Lamentations 4:1

Lamentations 4:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)How is the gold become dim! how is the most fine gold changed! the stones of the sanctuary are poured out in the top of every street.
• New International Version (NIV)How the gold has lost its luster, the fine gold become dull! The sacred gems are scattered at every street corner.
• English Standard Version (ESV)How the gold has grown dim, how the pure gold is changed! The holy stones lie scattered at the head of every street.
• New King James Version (NKJV)How the gold has become dim! How changed the fine gold! The stones of the sanctuary are scattered At the head of every street.

Context of Lamentations 4:1

Alas! Gold has lost its luster; pure gold loses value. Jewels are scattered on every street corner. ב (Bet) 2The precious sons of Zion were worth their weight in gold – Alas! – but now they are treated like broken clay pots, made by a potter. ג (Gimel) 3Even the jackals nurse their young at their breast, but my people are cruel, like ostriches in the desert. ד (Dalet)

Lamentations 4:1 word by word

אֵיכָה֙ יוּעַ֣ם זָהָ֔ב יִשְׁנֶ֖א הַכֶּ֣תֶם הַטּ֑וֹב תִּשְׁתַּפֵּ֙כְנָה֙ אַבְנֵי־קֹ֔דֶשׁ בְּרֹ֖אשׁ כָּל־חוּצֽוֹת׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• How is the goldזָהָבzâhâb · goldH2091
• become dimעָמַם‛âmam · to darkenH6004
• is the mostטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
• fine goldכֶּ֫תֶםkethem · goldH3800
• changedשָׁנָאshânâ' · to changeH8132
• the stonesאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
• of the sanctuaryקֹ֫דֶשׁqôdesh · holinessH6944
• are poured outשָׁפַךְshâphak · to pour: scatterH8210
• in the topרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: topH7218
• of every streetחוּץchûts chûts · outsideH2351

Cross-references for Lamentations 4:1

• 2 Kings 25:9He burned down the Lord’s temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house.
• Isaiah 1:21How tragic that the once-faithful city has become a prostitute! She was once a center of justice, fairness resided in her, but now only murderers.
• Isaiah 14:12Look how you have fallen from the sky, O shining one, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the ground, O conqueror of the nations!
• Ezekiel 7:19They will discard their silver in the streets, and their gold will be treated like filth. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them on the day of the Lord’s fury. They will not satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs because their wealth was the obstacle leading to their iniquity.
• Lamentations 2:19Get up! Cry out in the night when the night watches start! Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord! Lift up your hands to him for your children’s lives; they are fainting at every street corner. ר (Resh)
• Jeremiah 52:13He burned down the Lord’s temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house.
• Matthew 24:2And he said to them, “Do you see all these things? I tell you the truth, not one stone will be left on another. All will be torn down!”
• Mark 13:2Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left on another. All will be torn down!”
• Luke 21:5Now while some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and offerings, Jesus said,

Commentaries on Lamentations 4:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1How is the gold become dim - The prophet contrasts, in various affecting instances, the wretched circumstances of the Jewish nation, with the flourishing state of their affairs in former times. Here they are compared to gold, זהב zahab, native gold from the mine, which, contrary to its nature, is become dim, is tarnished; and even the fine, the sterling gold, כתם kethem, that which was stamped to make it current, is changed or adulterated, so as to be no…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1The stones of the sanctuary - Or, the hallowed stones, literally stones of holiness, a metaphor for the people themselves. The actual stones of the temple would not be thus widely thrown about as to be seen everywhere, but the prophet has already affirmed this of the young children dying of hunger (compare Lamentations 2:19).Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The deplorable state of the nation is contrasted with its ancient prosperity. Verses 1-12 What a change is here! Sin tarnishes the beauty of the most exalted powers and the most excellent gifts; but that gold, tried in the fire, which Christ bestows, never will be taken from us; its outward appearance may be dimmed, but its real value can never be changed. The horrors of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem are again described. Beholding the sad…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-22Although God’s people still experience his judgment, they will soon experience restoration.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-22Aleph. 1. gold--the splendid adornment of the temple [Calvin] (La 1:10; 1Ki 6:22; Jr 52:19); or, the principal men of Judea [Grotius] (La 4:2). stones of ... sanctuary--the gems on the breastplate of the high priest; or, metaphorically, the priests and Levites. Beth.Read the comment

Topics related to Lamentations 4:1

• Church
• Gold
• Temple

In the dictionaries

• Comparable
• Dim
• Poetry
• Acrostic
• Alphabet
• Fine
• Gold
• Lamentations, Book of
• Poetry, Hebrew
• Proverbs, the Book of

Commentaries on Lamentations 4

• 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
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings