A Song of Sorrow
1 The Lord told me to sing this song of sorrow for two princes of Israel:
2 What a lioness your mother was!
She raised her cubs among the fierce male lions.
3 She raised a cub and taught him to hunt;
he learned to eat people.
4 The nations heard about him
and trapped him in a pit.
With hooks they dragged him off to Egypt.
5 She waited until she saw all hope was gone.
Then she raised another of her cubs,
and he grew into a fierce lion.
6 When he was full-grown,
he prowled with the other lions.
He too learned to hunt and eat people.
7 He wrecked forts, he ruined towns.
The people of the land were terrified
every time he roared.
8 The nations gathered to fight him;
people came from everywhere.
They spread their hunting nets
and caught him in their trap.
9 They put him in a cage
and took him to the king of Babylonia.
They kept him under guard,
so that his roar would never be heard again
on the hills of Israel.
10 Your mother was like a grapevine
planted near a stream.
Because there was plenty of water,
the vine was covered with leaves and fruit.
11 Its branches were strong
and grew to be royal scepters.
The vine grew tall enough to reach the clouds;
everyone saw how leafy and tall it was.
12 But angry hands pulled it up by the roots
and threw it to the ground.
The east wind dried up its fruit.
Its branches were broken off;
they dried up and were burned.
13 Now it is planted in the desert,
in a dry and waterless land.
14 The stem of the vine caught fire;
fire burned up its branches and fruit.
The branches will never again be strong,
will never be royal scepters.
This is a song of sorrow; it has been sung again and again.
1 Thou also, take vp a lamentation for the princes of Israel, 2 And say, Wherefore lay thy mother as a lyonesse among the lyons? she nourished her yong ones among the lyons whelps, 3 And she brought vp one of her whelps, and it became a lyon, and it learned to catch the praye, and it deuoured men. 4 The nations also heard of him, and he was taken in their nets, and they brought him in chaines vnto the land of Egypt. 5 Nowe when she sawe, that she had waited and her hope was lost, she tooke another of her whelps, and made him a lyon. 6 Which went among the lyons, and became a lyon, and learned to catch the praye, and he deuoured men. 7 And he knew their widowes, and he destroyed their cities, and the land was wasted, and all that was therein by the noyse of his roaring. 8 Then the nations set against him on euery side of the countreys, and laide their nets for him: so he was taken in their pit. 9 And they put him in prison and in chaines, and brought him to the King of Babel, and they put him in holdes, that his voyce should no more be heard vpon the mountaines of Israel. 10 Thy mother is like a vine in thy blood, planted by the waters: she brought foorth fruite and branches by the abundant waters, 11 And she had strong rods for the scepters of them that beare rule, and her stature was exalted among the branches, and she appeared in her height with the multitude of her branches. 12 But she was plucked vp in wrath: she was cast downe to the ground, and the East winde dried vp her fruite: her branches were broken, and withered: as for the rod of her strength, the fire consumed it. 13 And now she is planted in the wildernes in a drie and thirstie ground. 14 And fire is gone out of a rod of her branches, which hath deuoured her fruite, so that she hath no strong rod to be a scepter to rule: this is a lamentation and shalbe for a lamentation.