1 How dark the gold has become,
How the pure gold has changed!
The sacred stones are spilled out
At the corner of every street.
2 The precious sons of Zion,
Weighed against pure gold,
How they are regarded as earthenware jars,
The work of a potter’s hands!
3 Even jackals offer the breast,
They nurse their young;
But the daughter of my people has proved herself cruel,
Like ostriches in the wilderness.
4 The tongue of the infant clings
To the roof of its mouth because of thirst;
The children ask for bread,
But no one breaks it for them.
5 Those who used to eat delicacies
Are made to tremble in the streets;
Those who were raised in crimson clothing
Embrace garbage heaps.
6 For the wrongdoing of the daughter of my people
Is greater than the sin of Sodom,
Which was overthrown as in a moment,
And no hands were turned toward her.
7 Her consecrated ones were purer than snow,
They shined more than milk;
They were more ruddy in body than pearls of coral,
Their form was like lapis lazuli.
8 Their appearance is darker than soot,
They are not recognized in the streets;
Their skin is shriveled on their bones,
It is dry, it has become like wood.
9 Better off are those killed by the sword
Than those killed by hunger;
For they waste away, stricken
By the lack of the produce of the field.
10 The hands of compassionate women
Boiled their own children;
They became food for them
Due to the destruction of the daughter of my people.
11 The Lord has expended His wrath,
He has poured out His fierce anger;
And He has kindled a fire in Zion,
And it has consumed its foundations.
12 The kings of the earth did not believe,
Nor did any of the inhabitants of the world,
That the adversary and the enemy
Would enter the gates of Jerusalem.
13 Because of the sins of her prophets
And the wrongdoings of her priests,
Who have shed in her midst
The blood of the righteous,
14 They wandered, blind, in the streets;
They were defiled with blood,
Such that no one could touch their garments.
15 “Keep away! Unclean!” they cried out of themselves.
“Keep away, keep away, do not touch!”
For they distanced themselves as well as wandered;
People among the nations said,
“They shall not continue to reside with us.”
16 The presence of the Lord has scattered them,
He will not continue to look at them;
They did not honor the priests,
They did not favor the elders.
17 Yet our eyes failed,
Looking for help was useless;
At our observation point we have watched
For a nation that could not save.
18 They hunted our steps
So that we could not walk in our streets;
Our end drew near,
Our days were finished
For our end had come.
19 Our pursuers were swifter
Than the eagles of the sky;
They chased us on the mountains,
They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
20 The breath of our nostrils, the Lord’s anointed,
Was captured in their pits,
Of whom we had said, “In his shadow
We shall live among the nations.”
21 Rejoice and be joyful, daughter of Edom,
Who lives in the land of Uz;
But the cup will pass to you as well,
You will become drunk and expose yourself.
22 The punishment of your wrongdoing has been completed, daughter of Zion;
He will no longer exile you.
But He will punish your wrongdoing, daughter of Edom;
He will expose your sins!
1 Remember, Lord, what has come upon us;
Look, and see our disgrace!
2 Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers,
Our houses to foreigners.
3 We have become orphans, without a father;
Our mothers are like widows.
4 We have to pay for our drinking water,
Our wood comes to us at a price.
5 Our pursuers are at our necks;
We are worn out, we are given no rest.
6 We have submitted to Egypt and Assyria to get enough bread.
7 Our fathers sinned, and are gone;
It is we who have been burdened with the punishment for their wrongdoings.
8 Slaves rule over us;
There is no one to rescue us from their hand.
9 We get our bread at the risk of our lives
Because of the sword in the wilderness.
10 Our skin has become as hot as an oven,
Because of the ravages of hunger.
11 They violated the women in Zion,
The virgins in the cities of Judah.
12 Leaders were hung by their hands;
Elders were not respected.
13 Young men worked at the grinding mill,
And youths staggered under loads of wood.
14 Elders are absent from the gate,
Young men from their music.
15 The joy of our hearts has ended;
Our dancing has been turned into mourning.
16 The crown has fallen from our head;
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
17 Because of this our heart is faint,
Because of these things our eyes are dim;
18 Because of Mount Zion which lies desolate,
Jackals prowl in it.
19 You, Lord, rule forever;
Your throne is from generation to generation.
20 Why will You forget us forever?
Why do You abandon us for so long?
21 Restore us to You, Lord, so that we may be restored;
Renew our days as of old,
22 Unless You have utterly rejected us
And are exceedingly angry with us.
1 For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. 2 For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every violation and act of disobedience received a just punishment, 3 how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, 4 God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders, and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.
5 For He did not subject to angels the world to come, about which we are speaking. 6 But someone has testified somewhere, saying,
“What is man, that You think of him?
Or a son of man, that You are concerned about him?
7 You have made him for a little while lower than angels;
You have crowned him with glory and honor;
8 You have put everything in subjection under his feet.”
For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him.
9 But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of His suffering death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.
10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the originator of their salvation through sufferings. 11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for this reason He is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, 12 saying,
“I will proclaim Your name to My brothers,
In the midst of the assembly I will sing Your praise.”
13 And again,
“I will put My trust in Him.”
And again,
“Behold, I and the children whom God has given Me.”
14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, so that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. 16 For clearly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendants of Abraham. 17 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brothers so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.
1 Bless the Lord, my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, my soul,
And do not forget any of His benefits;
3 Who pardons all your guilt,
Who heals all your diseases;
4 Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with favor and compassion;
5 Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
6 The Lord performs righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known His ways to Moses,
His deeds to the sons of Israel.
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
Slow to anger and abounding in mercy.
9 He will not always contend with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor rewarded us according to our guilty deeds.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him.
12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our wrongdoings from us.
13 Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.
14 For He Himself knows our form;
He is mindful that we are nothing but dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass;
Like a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
16 When the wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its place no longer knows about it.
17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting for those who fear Him,
And His justice to the children’s children,
18 To those who keep His covenant
And remember His precepts, so as to do them.
19 The Lord has established His throne in the heavens,
And His sovereignty rules over all.
20 Bless the Lord, you His angels,
Mighty in strength, who perform His word,
Obeying the voice of His word!
21 Bless the Lord, all you His angels,
You who serve Him, doing His will.
22 Bless the Lord, all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the Lord, my soul!
23 Like an earthenware vessel overlaid with silver impurities
Are burning lips and a wicked heart.
