Chapter 5

Lord, remember what has happened to us. Look, and see our disgrace!
Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our houses to foreigners.
We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are widows.
We must pay for the water we drink; our wood comes at a price.
We are closely pursued; we are tired, and no one offers us rest.
We made a treaty with Egypt and with Assyria, to get enough food.
Our ancestors sinned; they no longer exist, but we bear their punishment.
Slaves rule over us; no one rescues us from them.
We secure our food at the risk of our lives because of the sword in the wilderness.
Our skin is as hot as an oven from the ravages of hunger.
Women have been raped in Zion, virgins in the cities of Judah.
Princes have been hung up by their hands; elders are shown no respect.
Young men labor at millstones; boys stumble under loads of wood.
The elders have left the city gate, the young men, their music.
Joy has left our hearts; our dancing has turned to mourning.
The crown has fallen from our head. Woe to us, for we have sinned.
Because of this, our heart is sick; because of these, our eyes grow dim:
because of Mount Zion, which lies desolate and has jackals prowling in it.
You, Lord, are enthroned forever; your throne endures from generation to generation.
Why do you continually forget us, abandon us for our entire lives?
Lord, bring us back to yourself, so we may return; renew our days as in former times,
unless you have completely rejected us and are intensely angry with us.