Lamentations 5:6 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Lamentations 5:1-16

Isa. any afflicted? let him pray; and let him in prayer pour out his complaint to God, and make known before him his trouble. The people of God do so here; being overwhelmed with grief, they give vent to their sorrows at the footstool of the throne of grace, and so give themselves ease. They complain not of evils feared, but of evils felt: ?Remember what has come upon us, Lam. 5:1. What was of old threatened against us, and was long in the coming, has now at length come upon us, and we are... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Lamentations 5:6

We have given our hand to the Egyptians ,.... Either by way of supplication, to beg bread of them; or by way of covenant and agreement; or to testify subjection to them, in order to be supplied with food: many of the Jews went into Egypt upon the taking of the city, Jeremiah 43:5 ; and to the Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread ; among whom many of the captives were dispersed; since from hence they are said to be returned, as well as from Egypt, Isaiah 11:16 . read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 5:6

We have given the hand to the Egyptians - We have sought alliances both with the Egyptians and Assyrians, and made covenants with them in order to get the necessaries of life. Or, wherever we are now driven, we are obliged to submit to the people of the countries in order to the preservation of our lives. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 5:6

Verse 6 He speaks here of the mendicity of the people, that they sought bread from every quarter. To give the hand, is explained in three ways: some say that it means humbly to ask; others, to make an agreement; and others, to extend it in token of misery, as he who cannot ask for help, intimates his wants by extending his hand. But the Prophet seems simply to mean that the people were so distressed by want, that they begged bread. I then take the expression, to give the hand, as meaning that... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 5:1-18

INSULT UPON INSULT HAS BEEN HEAPED UPON JERUSALEM . read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 5:6

We have given the hand, etc. Starvation awaits the Jews unless they submit to one or the other of their hereditary foes. Some escape to Egypt and "give the hand" ( i.e. surrender, Jeremiah 1:15 ) to the lords of the fertile Nile valley; others acquiesce in the fate of the majority, and sue for the alms of the Babylonians. read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Lamentations 5:6

“To give the hand” means to submit oneself. Absolutely it was Babylon that had just destroyed their national existence, but Jeremiah means that all feelings of patriotism were crushed, and the sole care that remained was the desire for personal preservation. To secure this the people would readily have submitted to the yoke either of Egypt or Assyria, the great powers from which in their past history they had so often suffered. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Lamentations 5:1-6

Lamentations 5:1-6. Consider, and behold our reproach Which we suffer from the heathen nations. Our inheritance is turned to strangers Namely, to the Babylonians and others, to whom our lands are given. We are orphans and fatherless All the chief men being carried away to Babylon, lest they should make any fresh attempts to shake off the Babylonish yoke, all that were left in Judea were poor people, destitute of almost every thing. We have drunk our water for money, &c. When our... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Lamentations 5:1-22

A prayer for mercy (5:1-22)This poem was apparently written in Judah some time after the fall of Jerusalem. Only the people of no use to Babylon were left in the land, and this poem reflects the hardships they faced (cf. Jeremiah 52:16).In a plea to God for mercy, the people remind him of their present shame (5:1). Death has broken up their families, and the invaders have taken over their houses and lands (2-3). They live and work like slaves in their own country, and have to buy water from... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Lamentations 5:6

given the hand. Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of the Adjunct), App-6 , for voluntary submission. read more