(12) Princes are hanged . . .—The words point to the shameless exposure of the bodies of the dead. (Comp. the treatment of Saul and his sons in 1 Samuel 31:10-12.) This was the common practice of the Assyrian kings (Records of the Past, i. 38). Neither age nor dignity (both are implied in the word “elders”) was any safeguard against atrocities, either in life or death. read more
SIN AND SHAMELamentations 5:11-18 THE keynote of the fifth elegy is struck in its opening verse when the poet calls upon God to remember the reproach that has been cast upon His people. The preceding poems dwelt on the sufferings of the Jews; here the predominant thought is that of the humiliations to which they have been subjected. The shame of Israel and the sin which had brought it on are now set forth with point and force. If, as some think, the literary grace of the earlier compositions is... read more
CHAPTER 5 The Prayer of Hope The lamentations end with a prayer: “Remember, O LORD, what is come upon us; consider and behold our reproach.” It is the prayer of confession and of hope, which reaches the heart of the God of Israel. The prophet, in behalf of the nation, pours out his confession: “The crown is fallen from our head; woe unto us that we have sinned.” And there is hope in the Lord who remaineth, whose throne is from generation to generation. The prayer, “Turn Thou us unto Thee, O... read more
5:12 Princes were hung up by {f} their hand: the faces of elders were not honoured.(f) That is, by the enemies hand. read more
The touching significance of this book lies in the fact that it is the disclosure of the love and sorrow of Jehovah for the very people He is chastening a sorrow wrought by the Spirit in the heart of Jeremiah. Compare Jeremiah 13:7 ; Matthew 23:36-38 ; and Romans 9:1-5 . Scofield Reference Bible As regards its external structure, the composition of the book, both as a whole and in its several parts, is so artistic, that anything like it can hardly be found in any other book of Holy Scriptures.... read more
Sin's Garden Lamentations 5:0 If we would work our way up to this text, it will be through a very dreary course of reflection. Probably there is nothing like this chapter in all the elegies of the world. For what is there here more than elegy? There is a death deeper than death. The blank verse is noble, but the moral sentiment is horrible. Let us not deceive ourselves by blank verse. We do not know anything finer than these lines, or many of them, regarded simply as poetry; but when we look... read more
We have given the hand to the Egyptians, and to the Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread. Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their iniquities. Servants have ruled over us: there is none that doth deliver us out of their hand. We gat our bread with the peril of our lives because of the sword of the wilderness. Our skin was black like an oven because of the terrible famine. They ravished the women in Zion, and the maids in the cities of Judah. Princes are hanged up by their... read more
Oppressed. Hebrew, "afflicted." Brutal insolence prevailed. (Calmet) read more
Hand. Thus Leonidas was treated, after his head was cut off, by Xerxes. (Herodotus vii. 238.) read more
Get Bible verse every day in your inbox
Read on Mobile
John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 5:1-22
Zion’s earnest Petition for DeliveranceThis final poem is not so much an elegy as a prayer or meditation. The tone is more calm and spiritual than the others, with no trace of vindictiveness. The poet, speaking for the people, ’will have God know everything.’ Though divided into 22 vv., it is not an acrostic. Rhyme takes the place of the alphabetical structure, the poem having not less than 45 words ending in the sound u: cp. Psalms 124. Like Lamentations 4, each v. is composed of two members... read more