1How has Adonai covered the daughter of Tzion with a cloud, in His anger! He has cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Yisra’el, and has not remembered His footstool in the day of His anger. 2Adonai has swallowed up unsparingly all the habitations of Ya’akov; He has thrown down in His wrath the strongholds of Bat Yehudah; He has brought them down to the ground; He has profaned the kingdom and the princes thereof. 3He has cut off in fierce anger all the horn of Yisra’el; He has drawn back His right hand from before the enemy; and He has burned in Ya’akov like a flaming fire, which devours round about. 4He has bent His bow like an enemy, standing with His right hand as an enemy, and has slain all that were pleasant to the eye; in the tent of the daughter of Tzion He has poured out His fury like fire. 5Adonai is become as an enemy, He has swallowed up Yisra’el; He has swallowed up all her palaces, He has destroyed his strongholds; and He has multiplied in Bat Yehudah mourning and moaning. 6And He has stripped His hedge, as if it were a garden, He has destroyed His time of meeting; יהוה has caused to be forgotten in Tzion Mo’ed and Shabbat, and has rejected in the indignation of His anger the king and the priest. 7Adonai has cast off His Mizbe’akh, He has abhorred His Mikdash, He has given up into the hand of the enemy the walls of her palaces; they have made a noise in Beit יהוה , as in the day of a Mo’ed. 8 יהוה has purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Tzion; He has stretched out the line, He has not withdrawn His hand from destroying; but He has made the rampart and wall to mourn, they languish together. 9Her gates are sunk into the ground; He has destroyed and broken her bars; her king and her princes are among the nations, instruction is no more; yes, her prophets find no vision from יהוה . They10 sit upon the ground, and keep silence, the Z’kenim of the daughter of Tzion; they have cast up dust upon their heads, they have girded themselves with sackcloth; the virgins of Yerushalayim hang down their heads to the ground. 11My eyes do fail with tears, my inwards burn, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the breach of the daughter of my people; because the young children and those that nurse swoon in the broad places of the city. 12They say to their mothers, “Where is grain and wine?” When they swoon as the wounded in the broad places of the city, when their soul is poured out into their mothers’ bosom. 13What shall I take to witness for you? What shall I liken to you, O Bat Yerushalayim? What shall I equal to you, that I may comfort you, O virgin daughter of Tzion? For your breach is great like the sea; who can heal you? 14Your prophets have seen visions for you of vanity and delusion; and they have not uncovered Your iniquity, to bring back your captivity; but have prophesied for you burdens of vanity and seduction. 15All that pass by clap their hands at you; they hiss and wag their head at Bat Yerushalayim, “Is this the city that men called the perfection of beauty, the joy of the whole earth?” 16All Your enemies have opened their mouth wide 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 יהוה has done that which He devised; He has performed His word that He commanded in the days of old; He has thrown down unsparingly; and He has caused the enemy to rejoice over you, He has exalted the horn of Your adversaries. 18Their heart cried unto Adonai, “O wall of the daughter of Tzion, let tears run down like a river day and night; give yourself no respite; let not your Bat Ayin cease. 19Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches; pour out your heart like water before the face of Adonai; 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 יהוה , and consider, to whom You have done thus! Shall the women eat their fruit, the children that are dandled in the hands? Shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the Mikdash of Adonai? 21The youth and the old man lie on the ground in the streets; my virgins and my young men are fallen by the sword; You have slain them in the day of Your anger; You have slaughtered unsparingly. 22You have called, as in the day of a Mo’ed, my terrors on every side, and there was none in the day of the anger of יהוה that escaped or remained; those that I have dandled and brought up has my enemy consumed.”
אאֵיכָה יָעִיב בְּאַפּוֹ אֲדֹנָי אֶת בַּת צִיּוֹן הִשְׁלִיךְ מִשָּׁמַיִם אֶרֶץ תִּפְאֶרֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל; וְלֹא זָכַר הֲדֹם רַגְלָיו בְּיוֹם אַפּוֹ. בבִּלַּע אֲדֹנָי לא (וְלֹא) חָמַל אֵת כָּל נְאוֹת יַעֲקֹב הָרַס בְּעֶבְרָתוֹ מִבְצְרֵי בַת יְהוּדָה הִגִּיעַ לָאָרֶץ; חִלֵּל מַמְלָכָה וְשָׂרֶיהָ. גגָּדַע בָּחֳרִי אַף כֹּל קֶרֶן יִשְׂרָאֵל הֵשִׁיב אָחוֹר יְמִינוֹ מִפְּנֵי אוֹיֵב; וַיִּבְעַר בְּיַעֲקֹב כְּאֵשׁ לֶהָבָה אָכְלָה סָבִיב. דדָּרַךְ קַשְׁתּוֹ כְּאוֹיֵב נִצָּב יְמִינוֹ כְּצָר וַיַּהֲרֹג כֹּל מַחֲמַדֵּי עָיִן; בְּאֹהֶל בַּת צִיּוֹן שָׁפַךְ כָּאֵשׁ חֲמָתוֹ. ההָיָה אֲדֹנָי כְּאוֹיֵב בִּלַּע יִשְׂרָאֵל בִּלַּע כָּל אַרְמְנוֹתֶיהָ שִׁחֵת מִבְצָרָיו; וַיֶּרֶב בְּבַת יְהוּדָה תַּאֲנִיָּה וַאֲנִיָּה. ווַיַּחְמֹס כַּגַּן שֻׂכּוֹ שִׁחֵת מֹעֲדוֹ; שִׁכַּח יהוה בְּצִיּוֹן מוֹעֵד וְשַׁבָּת וַיִּנְאַץ בְּזַעַם אַפּוֹ מֶלֶךְ וְכֹהֵן. זזָנַח אֲדֹנָי מִזְבְּחוֹ נִאֵר מִקְדָּשׁוֹ הִסְגִּיר בְּיַד אוֹיֵב חוֹמֹת אַרְמְנוֹתֶיהָ; קוֹל נָתְנוּ בְּבֵית יהוה כְּיוֹם מוֹעֵד. חחָשַׁב יהוה לְהַשְׁחִית חוֹמַת בַּת צִיּוֹן נָטָה קָו לֹא הֵשִׁיב יָדוֹ מִבַּלֵּעַ; וַיַּאֲבֶל חֵל וְחוֹמָה יַחְדָּו אֻמְלָלוּ. טטָבְעוּ בָאָרֶץ שְׁעָרֶיהָ אִבַּד וְשִׁבַּר בְּרִיחֶיהָ; מַלְכָּהּ וְשָׂרֶיהָ בַגּוֹיִם אֵין תּוֹרָה גַּם נְבִיאֶיהָ לֹא מָצְאוּ חָזוֹן מֵיהוה . ייֵשְׁבוּ לָאָרֶץ יִדְּמוּ זִקְנֵי בַת צִיּוֹן הֶעֱלוּ עָפָר עַל רֹאשָׁם חָגְרוּ שַׂקִּים; הוֹרִידוּ לָאָרֶץ רֹאשָׁן בְּתוּלֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם. יאכָּלוּ בַדְּמָעוֹת עֵינַי חֳמַרְמְרוּ מֵעַי נִשְׁפַּךְ לָאָרֶץ כְּבֵדִי עַל שֶׁבֶר בַּת עַמִּי: בֵּעָטֵף עוֹלֵל וְיוֹנֵק בִּרְחֹבוֹת קִרְיָה. יבלְאִמֹּתָם יֹאמְרוּ אַיֵּה דָּגָן וָיָיִן: בְּהִתְעַטְּפָם כֶּחָלָל בִּרְחֹבוֹת עִיר בְּהִשְׁתַּפֵּךְ נַפְשָׁם אֶל חֵיק אִמֹּתָם. יגמָה אֲעִידֵךְ מָה אֲדַמֶּה לָּךְ הַבַּת יְרוּשָׁלִַם מָה אַשְׁוֶה לָּךְ וַאֲנַחֲמֵךְ בְּתוּלַת בַּת צִיּוֹן: כִּי גָדוֹל כַּיָּם שִׁבְרֵךְ מִי יִרְפָּא לָךְ. ידנְבִיאַיִךְ חָזוּ לָךְ שָׁוְא וְתָפֵל וְלֹא גִלּוּ עַל עֲוֹנֵךְ לְהָשִׁיב שביתך (שְׁבוּתֵךְ); וַיֶּחֱזוּ לָךְ מַשְׂאוֹת שָׁוְא וּמַדּוּחִים. טוסָפְקוּ עָלַיִךְ כַּפַּיִם כָּל עֹבְרֵי דֶרֶךְ שָׁרְקוּ וַיָּנִעוּ רֹאשָׁם עַל בַּת יְרוּשָׁלִָם: הֲזֹאת הָעִיר שֶׁיֹּאמְרוּ כְּלִילַת יֹפִי מָשׂוֹשׂ לְכָל הָאָרֶץ. טזפָּצוּ עָלַיִךְ פִּיהֶם כָּל אֹיְבַיִךְ שָׁרְקוּ וַיַּחַרְקוּ שֵׁן אָמְרוּ בִּלָּעְנוּ; אַךְ זֶה הַיּוֹם שֶׁקִּוִּינֻהוּ מָצָאנוּ רָאִינוּ. יזעָשָׂה יהוה אֲשֶׁר זָמָם בִּצַּע אֶמְרָתוֹ אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה מִימֵי קֶדֶם הָרַס וְלֹא חָמָל; וַיְשַׂמַּח עָלַיִךְ אוֹיֵב הֵרִים קֶרֶן צָרָיִךְ. יחצָעַק לִבָּם אֶל אֲדֹנָי; חוֹמַת בַּת צִיּוֹן הוֹרִידִי כַנַּחַל דִּמְעָה יוֹמָם וָלַיְלָה אַל תִּתְּנִי פוּגַת לָךְ אַל תִּדֹּם בַּת עֵינֵךְ. יטקוּמִי רֹנִּי בליל (בַלַּיְלָה) לְרֹאשׁ אַשְׁמֻרוֹת שִׁפְכִי כַמַּיִם לִבֵּךְ נֹכַח פְּנֵי אֲדֹנָי; שְׂאִי אֵלָיו כַּפַּיִךְ עַל נֶפֶשׁ עוֹלָלַיִךְ הָעֲטוּפִים בְּרָעָב בְּרֹאשׁ כָּל חוּצוֹת. כרְאֵה יהוה וְהַבִּיטָה לְמִי עוֹלַלְתָּ כֹּה: אִם תֹּאכַלְנָה נָשִׁים פִּרְיָם עֹלְלֵי טִפֻּחִים אִם יֵהָרֵג בְּמִקְדַּשׁ אֲדֹנָי כֹּהֵן וְנָבִיא. כאשָׁכְבוּ לָאָרֶץ חוּצוֹת נַעַר וְזָקֵן בְּתוּלֹתַי וּבַחוּרַי נָפְלוּ בֶחָרֶב; הָרַגְתָּ בְּיוֹם אַפֶּךָ טָבַחְתָּ לֹא חָמָלְתָּ. כבתִּקְרָא כְיוֹם מוֹעֵד מְגוּרַי מִסָּבִיב וְלֹא הָיָה בְּיוֹם אַף יהוה פָּלִיט וְשָׂרִיד: אֲשֶׁר טִפַּחְתִּי וְרִבִּיתִי אֹיְבִי כִלָּם.
D'var יהוה , The Word of יהוה 