Lamentations 1:3

Lamentations 1:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude: she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits.
• New International Version (NIV)After affliction and harsh labor, Judah has gone into exile. She dwells among the nations; she finds no resting place. All who pursue her have overtaken her in the midst of her distress.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Judah has gone into exile because of affliction and hard servitude; she dwells now among the nations, but finds no resting place; her pursuers have all overtaken her in the midst of her distress.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Judah has gone into captivity, Under affliction and hard servitude; She dwells among the nations, She finds no rest; All her persecutors overtake her in dire straits.

Context of Lamentations 1:3

1Jerusalem, once so full of people, is now deserted. She who was once great among the nations now sits alone like a widow. Once the queen of all the earth, she is now a slave. 2She sobs through the night; tears stream down her cheeks. Among all her lovers, there is no one left to comfort her. All her friends have betrayed her and become her enemies. Judah has been led away into captivity, oppressed with cruel slavery. She lives among foreign nations and has no place of rest. Her enemies have chased her down, and she has nowhere to turn. 4The roads to Jerusalem are in mourning, for crowds no longer come to celebrate the festivals. The city gates are silent, her priests groan, her young women are crying— how bitter is her fate! 5Her oppressors have become her masters, and her enemies prosper, for the Lord has punished Jerusalem for her many sins. Her children have been captured and taken away to distant lands.

Lamentations 1:3 word by word

גָּֽלְתָ֨ה יְהוּדָ֤ה מֵעֹ֙נִי֙ וּמֵרֹ֣ב עֲבֹדָ֔ה הִ֚יא יָשְׁבָ֣ה בַגּוֹיִ֔ם לֹ֥א מָצְאָ֖ה מָנ֑וֹחַ כָּל־רֹדְפֶ֥יהָ הִשִּׂיג֖וּהָ בֵּ֥ין הַמְּצָרִֽים׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
• is gone into captivityגָּלָהgâlâh · to reveal: removeH1540
• because of afflictionעֳנִי‛ŏnîy · afflictionH6040
• and because of greatרֹבrôb · abundanceH7230
• servitudeעֲבֹדָה‛ăbôdâh ‛ăbôdâh · serviceH5656
• she dwellethיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
• among the heathenגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• she findethמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• no restמָנוֹחַmânôach · restingH4494
• all her persecutorsרָדַףrâdaph · to pursueH7291
• overtookנָשַׂגnâώag · to overtakeH5381
• her between the straitsמֵצַרmêtsar · straitsH4712

Cross-references for Lamentations 1:3

• 2 Kings 24:14King Nebuchadnezzar took all of Jerusalem captive, including all the commanders and the best of the soldiers, craftsmen, and artisans—10,000 in all. Only the poorest people were left in the land.
• 2 Kings 25:11Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took as exiles the rest of the people who remained in the city, the defectors who had declared their allegiance to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the population.
• 2 Chronicles 36:20The few who survived were taken as exiles to Babylon, and they became servants to the king and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power.
• Jeremiah 39:9Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took as exiles to Babylon the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had defected to him, and everyone else who remained.
• Jeremiah 52:15Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took as exiles some of the poorest of the people, the rest of the people who remained in the city, the defectors who had declared their allegiance to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen.
• Lamentations 2:9Jerusalem’s gates have sunk into the ground. He has smashed their locks and bars. Her kings and princes have been exiled to distant lands; her law has ceased to exist. Her prophets receive no more visions from the Lord.
• Leviticus 26:36“And for those of you who survive, I will demoralize you in the land of your enemies. You will live in such fear that the sound of a leaf driven by the wind will send you fleeing. You will run as though fleeing from a sword, and you will fall even when no one pursues you.
• Deuteronomy 28:64For the Lord will scatter you among all the nations from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship foreign gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods made of wood and stone!
• Jeremiah 24:9I will make them an object of horror and a symbol of evil to every nation on earth. They will be disgraced and mocked, taunted and cursed, wherever I scatter them.
• Ezekiel 5:12A third of your people will die in the city from disease and famine. A third of them will be slaughtered by the enemy outside the city walls. And I will scatter a third to the winds, chasing them with my sword.
• Lamentations 4:18We couldn’t go into the streets without danger to our lives. Our end was near; our days were numbered. We were doomed!
• Jeremiah 16:16“But now I am sending for many fishermen who will catch them,” says the Lord. “I am sending for hunters who will hunt them down in the mountains, hills, and caves.
• Jeremiah 52:8But the Babylonian troops chased King Zedekiah and overtook him on the plains of Jericho, for his men had all deserted him and scattered.
• Amos 9:1Then I saw a vision of the Lord standing beside the altar. He said, “Strike the tops of the Temple columns, so that the foundation will shake. Bring down the roof on the heads of the people below. I will kill with the sword those who survive. No one will escape!

Commentaries on Lamentations 1:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Between the straits - She has been brought into such difficulties, that it was impossible for her to escape. Has this any reference to the circumstances in which Zedekiah and the princes of Judah endeavored to escape from Jerusalem, by the way of the gates between the two walls? Jeremiah 52:7.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Because of … - i. e. the people, not of Jerusalem only, but of the whole land, “is gone into exile to escape from the affliction and laborious servitude,” to which they are subject in their own land. Persecutors … between the straits - Rather, “pursuers … in the midst of her straits.” The Jews flee like deer to escape from the invading Chaldaeans, but are driven by them into places from where there is no escape.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The woman in Lamentations 1:1 represents the nation of Judah. The writer describes Judah as a woman who now sits alone and suffers. gone into exile: The people of Judah were led away into captivity (forced to leave their land and live in another country). This happened four times: In 605 BC, some young men were taken to Babylon (Daniel 1:3–4). In 597 BC, King Jehoiachin and many others were taken away (2 Kings 24:12–16; Jeremiah 52:28; Ezekiel 1:2–3). In…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. (Jr 52:27). because of great servitude--that is, in a state "of great servitude," endured from the Chaldeans. "Because" is made by Vatablus indicative of the cause of her captivity; namely, her having "afflicted" and unjustly brought into "servitude" the manumitted bond-servants (Jr 34:8-22). Maurer explains it, "Judah has left her land (not literally 'gone into captivity') because of the yoke imposed on it by Nebuchadnezzar." no rest--(De 28:64, 65)…Read the comment

Topics related to Lamentations 1:3

• Captivity
• Persecution
• Sin

In the dictionaries

• Judah
• Judah, kingdom of Judah
• Judea, Judah
• Faint
• Heathen
• Poetry
• Acrostic
• Alphabet
• Lamentations, Book of
• Poetry, Hebrew

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