³¹ I hear a cry as of a woman in labor,^(A)
    a groan as of one bearing her first child—
the cry of Daughter Zion^(B) gasping for breath,^(C)
    stretching out her hands^(D) and saying,
“Alas! I am fainting;
    my life is given over to murderers.”^(E)

²⁴ We have heard reports about them,
    and our hands hang limp.^(A)
Anguish^(B) has gripped us,
    pain like that of a woman in labor.^(C)

²³ You who live in ‘Lebanon,^[a](A)’
    who are nestled in cedar buildings,
how you will groan when pangs come upon you,
    pain^(B) like that of a woman in labor!