Ratapan 3:21-33

3:21 But this I call ¹  to mind; ² 

therefore I have hope:

ח (Khet)

3:22 The Lord’s loyal kindness ³  never ceases; ⁴ 

his compassions ⁵  never end.

3:23 They are fresh ⁶  every morning;

your faithfulness is abundant! ⁷ 

3:24 “My portion is the Lord,” I have said to myself, ⁸ 

so I will put my hope in him.

ט (Tet)

3:25 The Lord is good to those who trust ⁹  in him,

to the one ¹⁰  who seeks him.

3:26 It is good to wait patiently ¹¹ 

for deliverance from the Lord. ¹² 

3:27 It is good for a man ¹³ 

to bear ¹⁴  the yoke ¹⁵  while he is young. ¹⁶ 

י (Yod)

3:28 Let a person ¹⁷  sit alone in silence,

when the Lord ¹⁸  is disciplining him. ¹⁹ 

3:29 Let him bury his face in the dust; ²⁰ 

perhaps there is hope.

3:30 Let him offer his cheek to the one who hits him; ²¹ 

let him have his fill of insults.

כ (Kaf)

3:31 For the Lord ²²  will not

reject us forever. ²³ 

3:32 Though he causes us ²⁴  grief, he then has compassion on us ²⁵ 

according to the abundance of his loyal kindness. ²⁶ 

3:33 For he is not predisposed to afflict ²⁷ 

or to grieve people. ²⁸ 

[3:21]  ¹ tn Heb “I cause to return.”

[3:21]  ² tn Heb “to my heart.” The noun לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) has a broad range of meanings, including its use as a metonymy of association, standing for thoughts and thinking = “mind” (e.g., Deut 32:46; 1 Chr 29:18; Job 17:11; Ps 73:7; Isa 10:7; Hag 1:5, 7; 2:15, 18; Zech 7:10; 8:17).

[3:22]  ³ tn It is difficult to capture the nuances of the Hebrew word חֶסֶד (khesed). When used of the Lord it is often connected to his covenant loyalty. This is the only occasion when the plural form of חֶסֶד (khesed) precedes the plural form of רַחֲמִים (rakhamim, “mercy, compassion”). The plural forms, as with this one, tend to be in late texts. The plural may indicate several concrete expressions of God’s kindnesses or may indicate the abstract concept of his kindness.

[3:22]  ⁴ tc The MT reads תָמְנוּ (tamnu) “indeed we are [not] cut off,” Qal perfect 1st person common plural from תָּמַם (tamam, “be finished”): “[Because of] the kindnesses of the Lord, we are not cut off.” However, the ancient versions (LXX, Syriac Peshitta, Aramaic Targum) and many medieval Hebrew mss preserve the alternate reading תָּמּוּ (tammu), Qal perfect 3rd person common plural from תָּמַם (tamam, “to be finished”): “The kindnesses of the Lord never cease.” The external evidence favors the alternate reading. The internal evidence supports this as well, as the parallel B-line suggests: “his compassions never come to an end.” Several English versions follow the MT: “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed” (KJV, NKJV), “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed” (NIV). Other English versions follow the alternate textual tradition: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases” (RSV, NRSV), “The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease” (NASB), “The kindness of the Lord has not ended” (NJPS) and “The Lord’s unfailing love still continues” (TEV).

[3:22]  ⁵ tn The plural form of רַחֲמִים (rakhamim) may denote the abstract concept of mercy, several concrete expressions of mercy, or the plural of intensity: “great compassion.” See IBHS 122 §7.4.3a.

[3:23]  ⁶ tn Heb “they are new.”

[3:23]  ⁷ tn The adjective רַב (rav) has a broad range of meanings: (1) quantitative: “much, numerous, many (with plurals), abundant, enough, exceedingly” and (2) less often in a qualitative sense: “great” (a) of space and location, (b) “strong” as opposed to “weak” and (c) “major.” The traditional translation, “great is thy faithfulness,” is less likely than the quantitative sense: “your faithfulness is abundant” [or, “plentiful”]. NJPS is on target in its translation: “Ample is your grace!”

[3:24]  ⁸ tn Heb “My soul said…” The term נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) is a synecdoche of part (= my soul) for the whole person (= I ).

[3:25]  ⁹ tn Heb “wait for him”

[3:25]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “to the soul…” The term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”) is a synecdoche of part (= “the soul who seeks him”) for the whole person (= “the person who seeks him”).

[3:26]  ¹¹ tn Heb “waiting and silently.” The two adjectives וְיָחִיל וְדוּמָם (vÿyakhil vÿdumam, “waiting and silently”) form a hendiadys: The first functions verbally and the second functions adverbially: “to wait silently.” The adjective דוּמָם (dumam, “silently”) also functions as a metonymy of association, standing for patience or rest (HALOT 217 s.v.). This metonymical nuance is captured well in less literal English versions: “wait in patience” (TEV) and “wait patiently” (CEV, NJPS). The more literal English versions do not express the metonymy as well: “quietly wait” (KJV, NKJV, ASV), “waits silently” (NASB), “wait quietly” (RSV, NRSV, NIV).

[3:26]  ¹² tn Heb “deliverance of the Lord.” In the genitive-construct, the genitive יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”) denotes source, that is, he is the source of the deliverance: “deliverance from the Lord.”

[3:27]  ¹³ tn See note at 3:1 on the Hebrew term for “man” here.

[3:27]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “that he bear.”

[3:27]  ¹⁵ sn Jeremiah is referring to the painful humiliation of subjugation to the Babylonians, particularly to the exile of the populace of Jerusalem. The Babylonians and Assyrians frequently used the phrase “bear the yoke” as a metaphor: their subjects were made as subservient to them as yoked oxen were to their masters. Because the Babylonian exile would last for seventy years, only those who were in their youth when Jerusalem fell would have any hope of living until the return of the remnant. For the middle-aged and elderly, the yoke of exile would be insufferable; but those who bore this “yoke” in their youth would have hope.

[3:27]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “in his youth.” The preposition ב (bet) functions in a temporal sense: “when.”

[3:28]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “him.” The speaking voice in this chapter continues to be that of the גֶּבֶר (gever, “man”). The image of female Jerusalem in chs. 1-2 was fluid, being able to refer to the city or its inhabitants, both female and male. So too the “defeated soldier” or “everyman” (see note at 3:1 on “man”) is fluid and can represent any member of the Jewish community, male and female. This line especially has a proverbial character which can be extended to any person, hence the translation. But masculine pronouns are otherwise maintained reflecting the Hebrew grammatical system and the speaking voice of the poem.

[3:28]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:28]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “has laid it on him.” The verb נָטַל (natal) is used 4 times in Biblical Hebrew; the related noun refers to heaviness or a burden. The entry of BDB 642 s.v. is outdated while HALOT 694 s.v. נטל is acceptable for the Qal. See D. R. Hillers, Lamentations (AB), 57. Hillers’ suggestion of a stative meaning for the Qal is followed here, though based on 2 Sam 24:12 “impose” is also possible.

[3:29]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Let him put his mouth in the dust.”

[3:30]  ²¹ tn Heb “to the smiter.”

[3:31]  ²² tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”). See the tc note at 1:14.

[3:31]  ²³ tn The verse is unusually short and something unrecoverable may be missing.

[3:32]  ²⁴ tn Heb “Although he has caused grief.” The word “us” is added in the translation.

[3:32]  ²⁵ tn Heb “He will have compassion.” The words “on us” are added in the translation.

[3:32]  ²⁶ tc The Kethib preserves the singular form חַסְדּוֹ (khasdo, “his kindness”), also reflected in the LXX and Aramaic Targum. The Qere reads the plural form חֲסָדָיו (khasadayv, “his kindnesses”) which is reflected in the Latin Vulgate.

[3:33]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he does not afflict from his heart.” The term לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) preceded by the preposition מִן (min) most often describes one’s initiative or motivation, e.g. “of one’s own accord” (Num. 16:28; 24:13; Deut. 4:9; 1Kings 12:33; Neh. 6:8; Job 8:10; Is. 59:13; Ezek. 13:2, 17). It is not God’s internal motivation to bring calamity and trouble upon people.

[3:33]  ²⁸ tn Heb “sons of men.”