¹ Kako osamljena sjedi prijestolnica, nekoć naroda puna; postade kao udovica, nekoć velika među narodima. Vladarica nad pokrajinama, na tlaku sad ide.

² Noći provodi gorko plačući, suzama pokriva obraze. Nikog nema da je utješi, od svih koji su je ljubili. Svi je prijatelji iznevjeriše i postaše joj neprijatelji.

³ Izagnan je Juda, u nevolji je i u progonstvu teškom. Sad živi među poganima, ne nalazi počinka. Svi ga gonitelji sustižu u tjesnacima.

⁴ Putovi sionski tuguju jer nitko ne dolazi na svetkovine. Sva su vrata razvaljena, svećenici uzdišu, ucviljene su djevice njegove, a on je pun gorčine.

⁵ Tlačitelji njegovi sada gospodare, neprijatelji likuju: Jahve ga ucvili zbog grijeha njegovih premnogih. Djeca mu otišla u izgnanstvo pred tlačiteljem.

⁶ Povukla se od Kćeri sionske sva slava njezina. Knezovi joj postadoše k'o ovnovi koji paše ne nalaze; nemoćni vrludaju ispred goniča.

⁷ Jeruzalem se spominje danÄa bijede i lutanja, kad mu narod dušmanu u ruke pade a nitko mu pomoći ne pruži. Tlačitelji ga gledahu smijući se njegovoj propasti.

⁸ Teško sagriješi Jeruzalem, postade kao nečistoća ženina. Svi što ga štovahu, sada ga preziru: jer vidješe golotinju njegovu. On samo plače i natrag se okreće.

⁹ Skuti su mu uprljani, nije ni sanjao što ga čeka. Duboko je pao, a nikog da ga tješi. "Pogledaj, Jahve, moju nevolju: jer neprijatelj likuje."

¹⁰ Neprijatelj poseže rukom za svim dragocjenostima njegovim. Gledao je gdje pogani provaljuju u njegovo Svetište, oni kojima si zabranio i pristup u svoj zbor.

¹¹ Sav narod njegov jeca, tražeći kruha; svi daju dragulje za hranu da bi ponovo živnuli. Evo, Jahve, pogledaj kako sam prezren.

¹² Svi vi što putem prolazite, pogledajte i vidite ima li boli kakva je bol kojom sam ja pogođen, kojom me Jahve udari u dan žestokog gnjeva svoga!

¹³ S visine pusti oganj, utjera ga u kosti moje. Pred noge mrežu mi razape i tako me nauznak obori; ucvili me, ožalosti za sva vremena.

¹⁴ Natovario me mojim grijesima, rukom ih svojom pritegnuo; na vrat mi ih navalio, snagu mi oduzeo. Predao me Gospod u ruke njihove, ne mogu se uspraviti.

¹⁵ Sve junake iz moje sredine Gospod odbaci: digao je zbor protiv mene da uništi uzdanicu moju. U tijesku izgazi Gospod mene, djevicu, kćerku Judinu.

¹⁶ Zato moram plakati, oči mi suze liju, jer daleko je od mene moj tješitelj da mi duh povrati. Sinovi su moji poraženi, odveć silan bijaše neprijatelj.

¹⁷ Sion pruža ruke: nema mu tješitelja. Jahve je protiv Jakova sa svih strana pozvao tlačitelje; i tako Jeruzalem postade među njima strašilo.

¹⁸ Jahve, on je pravedan; jer riječi se njegovoj protivih. Oh, čujte, narodi svi, gledajte moju bol: djevice moje, moji mladići, svi odoše u izgnanstvo!

¹⁹ Pozvah sve ljubavnike svoje, ali me oni prevariše. Moji svećenici i starješine pogiboše u gradu tražeći hrane da bi ponovo živnuli.

²⁰ Pogledaj, Jahve, u kakvoj sam tjeskobi, moja utroba strepi, srce mi se u grudima grči jer bijah opako prkosan! Vani mač pokosi moje sinove, a unutra - smrt.

²¹ Čuj kako stenjem: nema mi tješitelja! Svi neprijatelji čuju za moju nesreću i likuju što si to učinio! Daj da dođe dan što si ga objavio, da njima bude kao meni.

²² Neka se pokaže sva njina zloća pred licem tvojim, a onda postupaj s njima kao što si sa mnom postupio za sve grijehe moje! Jer samo uzdišem, a srce moje tuguje.

⁴¹ Sinove ćeš i kćeri rađati, ali tvoji neće biti jer će u sužanjstvo odlaziti.

¹ The burden of the valley of vision. What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops?

² You that are full of shouting, a tumultuous city, a joyous town; your slain are not slain with the sword, neither are they dead in battle.

³ All your rulers fled away together. They were bound by the archers. All who were found by you were bound together. They fled far away.

⁴ Therefore I said, "Look away from me. I will weep bitterly. Don't labor to comfort me for the destruction of the daughter of my people.

⁵ For it is a day of confusion, and of treading down, and of perplexity, from the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, in the valley of vision; a breaking down of the walls, and a crying to the mountains."

⁶ Elam carried his quiver, with chariots of men and horsemen; and Kir uncovered the shield.

⁷ It happened that your choicest valleys were full of chariots, and the horsemen set themselves in array at the gate.

⁸ He took away the covering of Judah; and you looked in that day to the armor in the house of the forest.

⁹ You saw the breaches of the city of David, that they were many; and you gathered together the waters of the lower pool.

¹⁰ You numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and you broke down the houses to fortify the wall.

¹¹ You also made a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the old pool. But you didn't look to him who had done this, neither did you have respect for him who purposed it long ago.

¹² In that day, the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, called to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to dressing in sackcloth:

¹³ and behold, joy and gladness, killing cattle and killing sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine: "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die."

¹⁴ Yahweh of Armies revealed himself in my ears, "Surely this iniquity will not be forgiven you until you die," says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies.

¹⁵ Thus says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, "Go, get yourself to this treasurer, even to Shebna, who is over the house, and say,

¹⁶ 'What are you doing here? Who has you here, that you have dug out a tomb here?' Cutting himself out a tomb on high, chiseling a habitation for himself in the rock!"

¹⁷ Behold, Yahweh will overcome you and hurl you away violently. Yes, he will grasp you firmly.

¹⁸ He will surely wind you around and around, and throw you like a ball into a large country. There you will die, and there the chariots of your glory will be, you shame of your lord's house.

¹⁹ I will thrust you from your office. You will be pulled down from your station.

²⁰ It will happen in that day that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,

²¹ and I will clothe him with your robe, and strengthen him with your belt. I will commit your government into his hand; and he will be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.

²² I will lay the key of the house of David on his shoulder. He will open, and no one will shut. He will shut, and no one will open.

²³ I will fasten him like a nail in a sure place. He will be for a throne of glory to his father's house.

²⁴ They will hang on him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, every small vessel, from the cups even to all the pitchers.

²⁵ "In that day," says Yahweh of Armies, "the nail that was fastened in a sure place will give way. It will be cut down, and fall. The burden that was on it will be cut off, for Yahweh has spoken it."