10 The elders of the daughter of Zion
(A)Sit on the ground and keep silence;
[a]They (B)throw dust on their heads
And (C)gird themselves with sackcloth.
The virgins of Jerusalem
Bow their heads to the ground.

11 (D)My eyes fail with tears,
My [b]heart is troubled;
(E)My [c]bile is poured on the ground
Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people,
Because (F)the children and the infants
Faint in the streets of the city.

12 They say to their mothers,
“Where is grain and wine?”
As they swoon like the wounded
In the streets of the city,
As their life is poured out
In their mothers’ bosom.

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Footnotes

  1. Lamentations 2:10 A sign of mourning
  2. Lamentations 2:11 Lit. inward parts
  3. Lamentations 2:11 Lit. liver

10 The elders of Daughter Zion
    sit on the ground in silence;(A)
they have sprinkled dust(B) on their heads(C)
    and put on sackcloth.(D)
The young women of Jerusalem
    have bowed their heads to the ground.(E)

11 My eyes fail from weeping,(F)
    I am in torment within(G);
my heart(H) is poured out(I) on the ground
    because my people are destroyed,(J)
because children and infants faint(K)
    in the streets of the city.

12 They say to their mothers,
    “Where is bread and wine?”(L)
as they faint like the wounded
    in the streets of the city,
as their lives ebb away(M)
    in their mothers’ arms.(N)

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