She weeps bitterly in the night, her tears [are] on her cheeks; she has no comforter among all her lovers. All her friends have been unfaithful to her; they have become her enemies.

The roads of Zion [are] mourning because no one comes to the festival. All her gates [are] desolate, her priests groan; her young women [are] worried, and she herself suffers bitterly.

Her foes have become [her] {master}, her enemies are at ease; Yahweh has made her suffer because of the greatness of her transgressions. Her children have gone away, captive before the foe.

Jerusalem remembers the days of her misery and wanderings, all her treasures that were from the days of long ago. When her people fell into [the] hand of the enemy, there was no one helping her; the enemies saw her, they mocked at her destruction.

The enemy has stretched out his hand over all her treasures; for she has seen the nations, they entered her sanctuary, those whom you commanded not to enter in your assembly.

All her people groan, they are searching for bread. They give their treasures for food, to bring back life. See, O Yahweh, and look, [how] I am despised.

For these [things], I am weeping, {my eyes flow with tears}; because a comforter is far from me, one to restore my life. My sons are desolate because [the] enemy has prevailed.

They hear that I was groaning; [there is] no comforter for me. All my enemies have heard my misery, they are pleased that you have done it. Bring [that] day that you have proclaimed, And let them be like me.

Her gates have sunk into the earth; he has ruined and broken her bars, her kings and its princes [are] among the nations; there is no more law. Also, her prophets have not found a revelation from Yahweh.

They sit on the ground, the elders of the daughter of Zion are silent. They cast dust on their head, they have put on sackcloth; the young women of Jerusalem have bowed their head down to the ground.

To their mothers they say, "Where is the bread and wine?" as they faint like the wounded in [the] public squares of a city, as their life is being poured out onto the bosom of their mothers.

What can I say for you? What can I compare to you, O daughter of Jerusalem? To what can I liken you so that I can comfort you, O virgin daughter of Zion? For your destruction [is] as vast as the sea; who can heal you?

Your prophets had a vision for you, false and worthless; they have not exposed your sin, to restore your fortune; they have seen oracles for you, false and misleading.

They have opened their mouths against you, all your enemies. They hiss and gnash a tooth, and they say, "We have destroyed [her]! Surely this [is] the day we have hoped for; we have found [it], we have seen [it]!"

Yahweh has done what he has planned; he has fulfilled his promise that he ordained from the days of old; he has demolished and not shown mercy; he has made an enemy rejoice over you, he has exalted the {might} of your foes.

Their heart cried to the Lord, "O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears stream down like a river; day and night, do not give yourself relief, do not give your eyes rest.

"Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the night watches; pour out your heart like water, before the face of the Lord. Lift to him your hands, for the life of your children, who faint in starvation, at the head of all streets."

They lie in [the] soil of [the] streets, young and old; my young women and young men, they have fallen by the sword; you have slain on the day of {your anger}, you have slaughtered and not shown mercy.

He has bent his bow and set me as the target for the arrow.

[They] are new in the morning, great is your faithfulness.

He does not {afflict willingly}, or grieve {anyone}.

Let us test and examine our ways; let us return to Yahweh.

Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to God in the heavens.

All our enemies have opened their mouth against us.

I have called your name, O Yahweh, from the depths of the pit.

You have heard my cry, "Do not shut your ear to my cry for help, for my relief!"

The lips and meditation of my assailants [are] against me all day long.

How [the] gold has grown dim, the pure gold has changed. The stones of holiness are scattered at the head of every street.

The precious sons of Zion weighed against fine gold, how they are thought of as earthen vessels of clay, the work of the potter's hands.

The ones who eat delicacies, they are ruined in the streets; the ones nurtured in purple lie [on] piles of trash.

The iniquity of the daughter of my people is greater than the sin of Sodom; it was overthrown in a moment and no hands were laid on her.

Her princes were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk; [their] bodies were more ruddy than rubies, sapphire their appearance.

[Now] their appearance is blacker than soot, they are not recognized in the streets; their skin has shriveled on their bones, it has become dry like wood.

Happier were [the] victims of [the] sword than the victims of famine; they have pined away, very hungry for the crops of my field.

They wander blindly in the streets; they were defiled with the blood, their clothes could not be touched.

Still our eyes failed, [looking for] our help in vain; in our watchtower, we kept watch for a nation that could not save.

They hunted our steps, from walking in our streets; our end has come near, {our days are finished}, our end has come.

Our pursuers were swifter than [the] eagles of [the] heavens; they chased us on the mountains, they have set an ambush for us in the desert.

The breath of our nostrils, the anointed one of Yahweh, was captured in their pits; of whom we said, "In his shadow we will live among the nations."

The [punishment] of your iniquity is completed, O daughter of Zion, your exile will not continue; [but] he will punish your iniquity, O daughter of Edom, he will reveal your sins.

Remember, O Yahweh, what has become of us; take note, and see our disgrace!

Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our houses, to foreigners.

We have become orphans, fatherless, our mothers are like widows.

{We pay for water with money}, our wood comes [to us] at a price.

We are driven on our necks; we are weary, there is no rest for us.

Our fathers have sinned, they are no more; we bear their iniquity.

{We risk our life for food} because of the sword of the desert.

Our skin is hot like an oven because of the scorching famine.

Elders are no longer at the gate, young men no longer play stringed instruments.

The joy of our hearts has stopped; our circle-dancing has changed to a mourning ceremony.

The crown has fallen from our head; woe to us, for we have sinned!

Because of this, our heart has become faint, because of these, our eyes have become dim.

You, O Yahweh, will sit forever [on] your throne for generation to generation.

Restore us to you, O Yahweh, that we will be restored; renew our days as of old.

Unless you have utterly rejected us, unless you are angry with us beyond measure.