1
Remember, O LORD, what has come upon us; look and see our reproach.
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 drink our water for money; our wood comes to us at a price.
5
Our pursuers are at our necks; we are weary, and there is no rest for us.
6
We have given our hand to Egypt, and to Assyria, to be satisfied with bread.
7
Our fathers sinned and are no more, and we bear their iniquities.
8
Servants rule over us; there is none to deliver 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 is hot as an oven, because of the burning heat of hunger.
11
Women have been ravished in Zion, and virgins in the cities of Judah.
12
Princes have been hanged up by their hands; the faces of elders were not honored.
13
Young men have carried millstones, and boys have stumbled under loads of wood.
14
The elders have ceased from the gate, and the young men from their music.
15
The joy of our heart has ceased; our dancing has turned into mourning.
16
The crown has fallen from our head. Woe to us, for we have sinned!
17
For this our heart is faint; for these things our eyes grow dim:
18
because of Mount Zion, which lies desolate; foxes walk about on it.
19
But you, O LORD, remain forever; your throne endures from generation to generation.
20
Why do you forget us forever, and forsake us so long a time?
21
Turn us back to yourself, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.
22
Or have you utterly rejected us? Are you exceedingly angry with us?
😢🙏🕊️ Summary of Lamentations 5 – A Prayer for Restoration from the Ruins
Lamentations 5 is the closing chapter of Lamentations and differs from the earlier chapters: it is not arranged as an acrostic (Hebrew alphabet), but as a corporate prayer of the people to God. After describing the great suffering and the Lord’s anger in the previous chapters, this chapter becomes the final cry of a people who are broken, poor, and ashamed. They confess their sin, bring their wounds before God, and plead for the Lord’s mercy to restore them. This is not only lament, but also a prayer filled with hope.
📌 1. A Cry for God’s Attention (verses 1–3)
“Remember, O LORD, what has come upon us…”
➡️ The prayer opens with a request that God would see and remember their suffering.
➡️ They have lost inheritance, homes, fathers, and protectors.
🎯 Restoration begins when we ask the Lord to look upon our condition.
📌 2. Life in Suffering and Shame (verses 4–18)
“We drink our water for money; our wood comes to us at a price.”
➡️ They describe life after the ruin:
- living as slaves in their own land
- women violated, orphans and widows left behind
- leaders killed, elders no longer honored
- joy gone, hearts made sick
🎯 Sin brings social suffering and complete spiritual decline.
📌 3. Confession: The LORD Is King (verses 19–22)
“But you, O LORD, remain forever…”
➡️ They confess that the Lord still reigns even in the midst of devastation.
➡️ Then they ask: “Why do you forget us so long?”
➡️ The final plea: “Turn us back to yourself, O LORD, and we shall be turned!”
🎯 True hope is born from confessing that only God can restore.
📖 Main Teaching
- Lament is not merely weeping, but also praying and hoping in the Lord
- In suffering, the Lord still reigns and is worthy of worship
- Restoration can happen only if the Lord himself draws his people back to him
- Corporate prayer as a nation/community is powerful in awakening spiritual awareness
- Though suffering is severe, the door to restoration remains open
✨ Spiritual Meaning (New Testament)
📖 Luke 15:18
“I will arise and go to my father…”
➡️ Like the lost son, a broken people return to the Lord in humility.
📖 James 4:8
“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”
➡️ Lamentations 5 is a living expression of longing to return to the Lord.
📖 2 Corinthians 4:8–9
“We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed…”
➡️ God’s people may fall, but they are not abandoned – there is still hope.
📖 Revelation 21:4
“And he will wipe away every tear from their eyes…”
➡️ A picture of the full restoration yet to come – the hope of Lamentations becomes eternal reality.
🕊️ “Remember, O LORD, what has come upon us; look and see our reproach.” – Lamentations 5:1
🕊️ “But you, O LORD, remain forever; your throne endures from generation to generation.” – Lamentations 5:19
🕊️ “Turn us back to yourself, O LORD, and we shall be turned; restore our days as of old…” – Lamentations 5:21
