Lamentations 4:13

Lamentations 4:13 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests, that have shed the blood of the just in the midst of her,
• New International Version (NIV)But it happened because of the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests, who shed within her the blood of the righteous.
• English Standard Version (ESV)This was for the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests, who shed in the midst of her the blood of the righteous.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Because of the sins of her prophets And the iniquities of her priests, Who shed in her midst The blood of the just.

Context of Lamentations 4:13

11But now the anger of the Lord is satisfied. His fierce anger has been poured out. He started a fire in Jerusalem that burned the city to its foundations. 12Not a king in all the earth— no one in all the world— would have believed that an enemy could march through the gates of Jerusalem. Yet it happened because of the sins of her prophets and the sins of her priests, who defiled the city by shedding innocent blood. 14They wandered blindly through the streets, so defiled by blood that no one dared touch them. 15“Get away!” the people shouted at them. “You’re defiled! Don’t touch us!” So they fled to distant lands and wandered among foreign nations, but none would let them stay.

Lamentations 4:13 word by word

מֵֽחַטֹּ֣את נְבִיאֶ֔יהָ עֲוֹנ֖וֹת כֹּהֲנֶ֑יהָ הַשֹּׁפְכִ֥ים בְּקִרְבָּ֖הּ דַּ֥ם צַדִּיקִֽים׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For the sinsחַטָּאתchaţţâ'âh chaţţâ'th · sinH2403
• of her prophetsנָבִיאnâbîy' · prophetH5030
• the iniquitiesעָוֺן‛âvôn ‛âvôn · iniquity: crimeH5771
• of her priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
• that have shedשָׁפַךְshâphak · to pour: killH8210
• the bloodדָּםdâm · bloodH1818
• of the justצַדִּיקtsaddîyq · righteousH6662
• in the midstקֶ֫רֶבqereb · entrails: amongH7130

Cross-references for Lamentations 4:13

• Lamentations 2:14Your prophets have said so many foolish things, false to the core. They did not save you from exile by pointing out your sins. Instead, they painted false pictures, filling you with false hope.
• Jeremiah 5:31the prophets give false prophecies, and the priests rule with an iron hand. Worse yet, my people like it that way! But what will you do when the end comes?
• Jeremiah 6:13“From the least to the greatest, their lives are ruled by greed. From prophets to priests, they are all frauds.
• Jeremiah 14:14Then the Lord said, “These prophets are telling lies in my name. I did not send them or tell them to speak. I did not give them any messages. They prophesy of visions and revelations they have never seen or heard. They speak foolishness made up in their own lying hearts.
• Jeremiah 23:11“Even the priests and prophets are ungodly, wicked men. I have seen their despicable acts right here in my own Temple,” says the Lord.
• Ezekiel 22:26Your priests have violated my instructions and defiled my holy things. They make no distinction between what is holy and what is not. And they do not teach my people the difference between what is ceremonially clean and unclean. They disregard my Sabbath days so that I am dishonored among them.
• Micah 3:11You rulers make decisions based on bribes; you priests teach God’s laws only for a price; you prophets won’t prophesy unless you are paid. Yet all of you claim to depend on the Lord. “No harm can come to us,” you say, “for the Lord is here among us.”
• Zephaniah 3:3Its leaders are like roaring lions hunting for their victims. Its judges are like ravenous wolves at evening time, who by dawn have left no trace of their prey.
• Jeremiah 2:20“Long ago I broke the yoke that oppressed you and tore away the chains of your slavery, but still you said, ‘I will not serve you.’ On every hill and under every green tree, you have prostituted yourselves by bowing down to idols.
• Jeremiah 26:8But when Jeremiah had finished his message, saying everything the Lord had told him to say, the priests and prophets and all the people at the Temple mobbed him. “Kill him!” they shouted.
• Matthew 23:31“But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
• Luke 11:47What sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments for the prophets your own ancestors killed long ago.
• Acts 7:52Name one prophet your ancestors didn’t persecute! They even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One—the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered.
• 1 Thessalonians 2:15For some of the Jews killed the prophets, and some even killed the Lord Jesus. Now they have persecuted us, too. They fail to please God and work against all humanity

Commentaries on Lamentations 4:13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 13For the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests - These most wretched beings, under the pretense of zeal for the true religion, persecuted the genuine prophets, priests, and people of God, and caused their blood to be shed in the midst of the city, in the most open and public manner; exactly as the murderous priests, and blood-thirsty preachers, under the reign of bloody Queen Mary, did in England. However, the profligate priests and…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13The blood of the just - Jeremiah 26:7-24 exhibits priests and prophets as the prime movers in an attempt to silence the word of God by putting Jeremiah to death. Compare the margin reference to Matthew.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-20Verses 13-20 Nothing ripens a people more for ruin, nor fills the measure faster, than the sins of priests and prophets. The king himself cannot escape, for Divine vengeance pursues him. Our anointed King alone is the life of our souls; we may safely live under his shadow, and rejoice in Him in the midst of our enemies, for He is the true God and eternal life.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. 1313. prophets--the false prophets (Jr 23:11, 21). Supply the sense thus: "For the sins ... these calamities have befallen her." shed the blood of the just--(Mt 23:31, 37). This received its full fulfilment in the slaying of Messiah and the Jews' consequent dispersion (Jas 5:6). Nun.Read the comment

Topics related to Lamentations 4:13

• Minister, Christian

In the dictionaries

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

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