| 5:1 | "Remember, GOD, all we've been through. Study our plight, the black mark we've made in history. |
| 5:2 | Our precious land has been given to outsiders, our homes to strangers. |
| 5:3 | Orphans we are, not a father in sight, and our mothers no better than widows. |
| 5:4 | We have to pay to drink our own water. Even our firewood comes at a price. |
| 5:5 | We're nothing but slaves, bullied and bowed, worn out and without any rest. |
| 5:6 | We sold ourselves to Assyria and Egypt just to get something to eat. |
| 5:7 | Our parents sinned and are no more, and now we're paying for the wrongs they did. |
| 5:8 | Slaves rule over us; there's no escape from their grip. |
| 5:9 | We risk our lives to gather food in the bandit-infested desert. |
| 5:10 | Our skin has turned black as an oven, dried out like old leather from the famine. |
| 5:11 | Our wives were raped in the streets in Zion, and our virgins in the cities of Judah. |
| 5:12 | They hanged our princes by their hands, dishonored our elders. |
| 5:13 | Strapping young men were put to women's work, mere boys forced to do men's work. |
| 5:14 | The city gate is empty of wise elders. Music from the young is heard no more. |
| 5:15 | All the joy is gone from our hearts. Our dances have turned into dirges. |
| 5:16 | The crown of glory has toppled from our head. Woe! Woe! Would that we'd never sinned! |
| 5:17 | Because of all this we're heartsick; we can't see through the tears. |
| 5:18 | On Mount Zion, wrecked and ruined, jackals pace and prowl. |
| 5:19 | And yet, GOD, you're sovereign still, your throne intact and eternal. |
| 5:20 | So why do you keep forgetting us? Why dump us and leave us like this? |
| 5:21 | Bring us back to you, GOD--we're ready to come back. Give us a fresh start. |
| 5:22 | As it is, you've cruelly disowned us. You've been so very angry with us." |
Lamentations 5 - The Message Bible
