Lamentations 1:4

Lamentations 1:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts: all her gates are desolate: her priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.
• New International Version (NIV)The roads to Zion mourn, for no one comes to her appointed festivals. All her gateways are desolate, her priests groan, her young women grieve, and she is in bitter anguish.
• English Standard Version (ESV)The roads to Zion mourn, for none come to the festival; all her gates are desolate; her priests groan; her virgins have been afflicted, and she herself suffers bitterly.
• New King James Version (NKJV)The roads to Zion mourn Because no one comes to the set feasts. All her gates are desolate; Her priests sigh, Her virgins are afflicted, And she is in bitterness.

Context of Lamentations 1:4

2She weeps bitterly in the night, And her tears are on her cheeks; She has no one to comfort her Among all her lovers. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; They have become her enemies. 3Judah has gone into exile out of affliction And harsh servitude; She lives among the nations, But she has not found a resting place; All those who pursued her have overtaken her In the midst of distress. The roads of Zion are in mourning Because no one comes to an appointed feast. All her gates are deserted; Her priests groan, Her virgins are worried, And as for Zion herself, it is bitter for her. 5Her adversaries have become her masters, Her enemies are secure; For the Lord has caused her grief Because of the multitude of her wrongdoings; Her little ones have gone away As captives led by the enemy. 6All of her splendor Is gone from the daughter of Zion; Her leaders have become like deer That have found no pasture, And they have fled without strength From the pursuer.

Lamentations 1:4 word by word

דַּרְכֵ֨י צִיּ֜וֹן אֲבֵל֗וֹת מִבְּלִי֙ בָּאֵ֣י מוֹעֵ֔ד כָּל־שְׁעָרֶ֙יהָ֙ שֽׁוֹמֵמִ֔ין כֹּהֲנֶ֖יהָ נֶאֱנָחִ֑ים בְּתוּלֹתֶ֥יהָ נּוּג֖וֹת וְהִ֥יא מַר־לָֽהּ׃ סRead the interlinear

• The roadsדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: roadH1870
• of Zionצִיּוֹןtsîyôn · ZionH6726
• are in mourningאָבֵל'âbêl · mourningH57
• Becauseמִן־min minnîy minnêy · fromH4480
• Becauseבְּלִיbelîy · withoutH1097
• one comesבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• to an appointedמוֹעֵדmô‛êd mô‛êd mô‛âdâh · meeting: festivalH4150
• feastמוֹעֵדmô‛êd mô‛êd mô‛âdâh · meeting: festivalH4150
• Allכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• her gatesשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
• desertedשָׁמֵםshâmêm · be desolate: destroyedH8074
• Her priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
• groanאָנַח'ânach · to sighH584
• virginsבְּתוּלָהbethûlâh · virginH1330
• are worriedיָגָהyâgâh · to sufferH3013
• herselfהוּאhû' hîy' · he/she/itH1931
• it isמָרַרmârar · to provokeH4843

Cross-references for Lamentations 1:4

• Lamentations 2:6And He has treated His tabernacle violently, like a despised garden; He has destroyed His appointed meeting place. The Lord has caused The appointed feast and Sabbath in Zion to be forgotten, And He has despised king and priest In the indignation of His anger.
• Lamentations 5:13Young men worked at the grinding mill, And youths staggered under loads of wood.
• Isaiah 24:4The earth dries up and crumbles away, the mainland dries out and crumbles away, the exalted of the people of the earth dwindle.
• Jeremiah 14:2“Judah mourns And her gates languish; Her people sit on the ground in mourning garments, And the cry of Jerusalem has ascended.
• Micah 3:12Therefore on account of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins, And the mountain of the temple will become high places of a forest.
• Lamentations 2:9Her gates have sunk into the ground, He has destroyed and broken her bars. Her king and her leaders are among the nations; The Law is gone. Her prophets, too, find No vision from the Lord.
• Jeremiah 9:11I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, A haunt of jackals; And I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.”
• Jeremiah 10:22The sound of a report! Behold, it is coming-- A great roar from the land of the north-- To make the cities of Judah A desolation, a haunt of jackals.
• Jeremiah 33:10“This is what the Lord says: ‘Yet again there will be heard in this place, of which you say, “It is a waste, without man and without animal,” that is, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, without man and without inhabitant and without animal,
• Lamentations 1:11All her people groan, seeking bread; They have given their treasures for food To restore their lives. “See, Lord, and look, For I am despised.”
• Lamentations 2:10The elders of the daughter of Zion Sit on the ground and are silent. They have thrown dust on their heads; They have put on sackcloth. The virgins of Jerusalem Have bowed their heads to the ground.
• Isaiah 32:9Rise up, you women who are at ease, And hear my voice; Listen to my word, You complacent daughters.
• Joel 1:8Wail like a virgin clothed with sackcloth For the groom of her youth.

Commentaries on Lamentations 1:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4The ways of Zion do mourn - A fine prosopopoeia. The ways in which the people trod coming to the sacred solemnities, being now no longer frequented, are represented as shedding tears; and the gates themselves partake of the general distress. All poets of eminence among the Greeks and Romans have recourse to this image. So Moschus, in his Epitaph on Bion, ver. 1-3: - , ̔<-144 ̔ . , , . . . "Ye winds, with grief your waving summits bow, Ye Dorian fountains…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Zion, as the holy city, is the symbol of the religious life of the people, just as Judah in the previous verse represents their national life. The “virgins” took a prominent part in all religious festivals Jeremiah 31:13; Exodus 15:20.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4Zion: In the Psalms and prophetic books, Zion represents the city of Jerusalem. In Lamentations, Zion is a poetic name for the city of Jerusalem. The writer uses this name even when the city lies in ruins (destroyed buildings and broken walls). Hebrews 12:22–24 speaks of the heavenly Zion (see also Revelation 14:1–5). The annual festivals in Jerusalem included: The Passover The Feast of Unleavened Bread The Feast of the Firstfruits (also called the Feast…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. feasts--the passover, pentecost (or the feast of weeks), and the feast of tabernacles. gates--once the place of concourse. He.Read the comment

Topics related to Lamentations 1:4

• Captivity
• Virgin
• Zion

In the dictionaries

• Faint
• Poetry
• Acrostic
• Alphabet
• Gate
• Lamentations, Book of
• Poetry, Hebrew
• Proverbs, the Book of
• Writing

Commentaries on Lamentations 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings