Book of Lamentations - wikipedia Book of Lamentations `` Lamentations '' redirects here. For other uses, see Lamentations ( disambiguation ). Tanakh ( Judaism ) Torah ( Instruction ) Genesis Brʾeišyt Exodus Šemot Leviticus Wayiqra Numbers Bəmidbar Deuteronomy Devarim Nevi'im ( Prophets ) Former Joshua Yehoshua Judges Shofetim Samuel Shemuel Kings Melakhim Latter Isaiah Yeshayahu Jeremiah Yirmeyahu Ezekiel Yekhezqel Minor Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi Ketuvim ( Writings ) Poetic Psalms Təhillîm Proverbs Mishlei Job Iyov Five Megillot ( Scrolls ) Song of Songs Shir Hashirim Ruth Rut Lamentations Eikhah Ecclesiastes Qoheleth Esther Ester Historical Daniel Daniyyel Ezra -- Nehemiah Ezra Chronicles Dibh 're Hayyamim Old Testament ( Christianity ) Pentateuch Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Historical Joshua Judges Ruth 1 and 2 Samuel 1 and 2 Kings 1 and 2 Chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Esther Wisdom Poetry Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Songs Prophetic Major prophets Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel Minor prophets Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi Deuterocanonical Tobit Judith Additions to Esther 1 Maccabees 2 Maccabees Wisdom of Solomon Sirach Baruch / Letter of Jeremiah Additions to Daniel Orthodox only 1 Esdras 2 Esdras Prayer of Manasseh Psalm 151 3 Maccabees 4 Maccabees Odes Orthodox Tewahedo 1 Enoch Jubilees 1, 2, and 3 Meqabyan Paralipomena of Baruch Broader canon Bible portal The Book of Lamentations ( Hebrew : אֵיכָה ‎, ' Êykhôh, from its incipit meaning `` how '' ) is a collection of poetic laments for the destruction of Jerusalem. In the Hebrew Bible it appears in the Ketuvim ( `` Writings '' ), beside the Song of Songs, Book of Ruth, Ecclesiastes and the Book of Esther ( the Megilloth or `` Five Scrolls '' ), although there is no set order ; in the Christian Old Testament it follows the Book of Jeremiah, as the prophet Jeremiah is its traditional author. Jeremiah 's authorship is no longer generally accepted, although it is generally accepted that the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon in 586 BCE forms the background to the poems. The book is partly a traditional `` city lament '' mourning the desertion of the city by God, its destruction, and the ultimate return of the divinity, and partly a funeral dirge in which the bereaved bewails and addresses the dead. The tone is bleak : God does not speak, the degree of suffering is presented as undeserved, and expectations of future redemption are minimal. The book is traditionally recited on the fast day of Tisha B'Av ( `` Ninth of Av '' ), mourning the destruction of both the First Temple and the Second ; in Christianity it is traditionally read during Tenebrae of the Holy Triduum. Contents 1 Structure 2 Summary 3 Composition 4 Themes 5 Later interpretation and influence 6 References 7 Bibliography 8 External links Structure `` Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem '' ( Rembrandt ) Lamentations consists of five distinct poems, corresponding to its five chapters. The first four are written as acrostics -- chapters 1, 2, and 4 each have 22 verses, corresponding to the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, the first lines beginning with the first letter of the alphabet, the second with the second letter, and so on. Chapter 3 has 66 verses, so that each letter begins three lines, and the fifth poem is not acrostic but still has 22 lines. The purpose or function of this form is unknown. Summary The book consists of five separate poems. In the first ( chapter 1 ), the city sits as a desolate weeping widow overcome with miseries. In Chapter 2 these miseries are described in connection with national sins and acts of God. Chapter 3 speaks of hope for the people of God : the chastisement would only be for their good ; a better day would dawn for them. Chapter 4 laments the ruin and desolation of the city and temple, but traces it to the people 's sins. Chapter 5 is a prayer that Zion 's reproach may be taken away in the repentance and recovery of the people. The five chapters can be seen as the five truths. Composition Lamentations has traditionally been ascribed to Jeremiah, probably on the grounds of the reference in 2 Chronicles 35 : 25 to the prophet composing a lament on the death of King Josiah, but there is no reference to Josiah in the book and no reason to connect it to Jeremiah. The language fits an Exilic date ( 586 -- 520 BCE ), and the poems probably originated from Judeans who remained in the land. Scholars are divided over whether they are the work of one or multiple authors. One clue pointing to multiple authors is that the gender and situation of the first - person witness changes -- the narration is feminine in the first and second lamentation, and masculine in the third, while the fourth and fifth are eyewitness reports of Jerusalem 's destruction ; conversely, the similarities of style, vocabulary, and theological outlook, as well as the uniform historical setting, are arguments for one author. Themes Lamentations combines elements of the qinah, a funeral dirge for the loss of the city, and the `` communal lament '' pleading for the restoration of its people. It reflects the view, traceable to Sumerian literature of a thousand years earlier, that the destruction of the holy city was a punishment by God for the communal sin of its people. Beginning with the reality of disaster, Lamentations concludes with the bitter possibility that God may have finally rejected Israel ( chapter 5 : 22 ). Sufferers in the face of grief are not urged to a confidence in the goodness of God ; in fact God is accountable for the disaster. The poet acknowledges that this suffering is a just punishment, still God is held to have had choice over whether to act in this way and at this time. Hope arises from a recollection of God 's past goodness, but although this justifies a cry to God to act in deliverance, there is no guarantee that he will. Repentance will not persuade God to be gracious, since he is free to give or withhold grace as he chooses. In the end, the possibility is that God has finally rejected his people and may not again deliver them : if God is predictable, then God is just a tool of humans. Nevertheless, it also affirms confidence that the mercies of Yahweh ( the God of Israel ) never end, but are new every morning ( 3 : 22 -- 33 ). Later interpretation and influence The Book of Lamentations is recited annually by Jews on Tisha b'Av ( Ninth of Av ), the anniversary of the destruction of both of the Jewish Temples. In Western Christianity, readings, chantings, and choral settings of the book are used in the Lenten religious service known as the Tenebrae ( Latin for darkness ). In the Church of England, readings are used at Morning and Evening Prayer on the Monday and Tuesday of Holy Week, and at Evening Prayer on Good Friday. In the Coptic Orthodox Church, the book 's third chapter is chanted on the twelfth hour of the Good Friday service, that commemorates the burial of Jesus. References Jump up ^ Berlin 2004, p. 1. Jump up ^ Hayes 1998, p. 167. ^ Jump up to : Hayes 1998, p. 168. Jump up ^ Hayes 1998, p. 169. ^ Jump up to : Clines 2003, p. 617. ^ Jump up to : Hillers 1993, p. 420. ^ Jump up to : Dobbs - Allsopp 2002, pp. 4 -- 5. Jump up ^ Lee 2008, pp. 566 -- 567. Jump up ^ F.B. Huey, Jeremiah, Lamentations, vol. 16, The New American Commentary ( Nashville : Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993 ), 443. Jump up ^ Berlin 2004, pp. 23 -- 24. Jump up ^ Clines 2003, pp. 617 -- 618. Bibliography Berlin, Adele ( 2004 ). Lamentations : A Commentary. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 9780664229740. Clines, David J.A. ( 2003 ). `` Lamentations ''. In Dunn, James D.G. ; Rogerson, John William. Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible. Eerdmans. ISBN 9780802837110. Dobbs - Allsopp, F.W. ( 2002 ). Lamentations. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 9780664237547. Hayes, John H. ( 1998 ). `` The Songs of Israel ''. In McKenzie, Steven L. ; Graham, Matt Patrick. The Hebrew Bible Today : An Introduction to Critical Issues. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 9780664256524. Hillers, Delbert R. ( 1993 ). `` Lamentations of Jeremiah ''. In Metzger, Bruce M. ; Coogan, Michael D. The Oxford Companion to the Bible. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199743919. Lee, Archie C.C. ( 2008 ). `` Book of Lamentations ''. In Sakenfeld, Katherine Doob. The New Interpreter 's Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 3. Abingdon Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 687 - 33365 - 3. External links Wikisource has original text related to this article : Lamentations Jewish translations : Eichah -- Lamentations ( Judaica Press ) translation ( with Rashi 's commentary ) at Chabad.org Book of Lamentations with Hebrew / English and mp3 chanting of the entire book in Hebrew. ( Website also contains other books of the bible. ) Laments ( R. David Seidenberg ) : a fresh translation with linear Hebrew and English, on neohasid.org A synopsis of Eichah 's chapters Christian translations : Online Bible at GospelHall.org Lamentations at Sacred Texts KJV, Tan, Sep, Vul Lamentations public domain audiobook at LibriVox Various versions Introductions Introduction to the Book of Lamentations Book of Lamentations Hebrew lament Preceded by Ruth Hebrew Bible Succeeded by Ecclesiastes Preceded by Jeremiah Protestant Old Testament Succeeded by Ezekiel Roman Catholic Old Testament Succeeded by Baruch E. Orthodox Old Testament Book of Lamentations Bible Lamentations 1 5 Place Jerusalem Zion People Jacob Judah Sources Hebrew Bible Septuagint Latin Vulgate Wycliffe Version King James Version American Standard Version World English Version ← Book of Jeremiah ( chapter 52 ) Book of Ezekiel ( chapter 1 ) → Books of the Bible Principal divisions Hebrew Bible / Old Testament Protocanon Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua Judges Ruth 1 -- 2 Samuel 1 -- 2 Kings 1 -- 2 Chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Esther Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi Deuterocanon and Apocrypha Catholic Orthodox Tobit Judith Additions to Esther 1 Maccabees 2 Maccabees Wisdom Sirach Baruch / Letter of Jeremiah Additions to Daniel Susanna Song of the Three Children Bel and the Dragon ) Orthodox only 1 Esdras 2 Esdras Prayer of Manasseh Psalm 151 3 Maccabees 4 Maccabees Odes Tewahedo Orthodox Enoch Jubilees 1, 2, and 3 Meqabyan Paralipomena of Baruch Broader canon Syriac Letter of Baruch 2 Baruch Psalms 152 -- 155 New Testament Matthew Mark Luke Acts Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Revelation Subdivisions Chapters and verses Pentateuch Wisdom Major / Minor prophets Gospels Synoptic Epistles Pauline Johannine Pastoral Catholic Apocalyptic literature Development Old Testament canon New Testament canon Antilegomena Jewish canon Christian canon Manuscripts Dead Sea Scrolls Samaritan Pentateuch Septuagint Targum Diatessaron Muratorian fragment Peshitta Vetus Latina Masoretic Text New Testament manuscript categories New Testament papyri New Testament uncials See also Biblical canon Luther 's canon Authorship English Bible translations Other books referenced in the Bible Pseudepigrapha list ) New Testament apocrypha Studies Synod of Hippo Textual criticism Portal WikiProject Book The Three Weeks Periods of observance The Three Weeks The Nine Days Week in which Tisha B'Av occurs Days of obervance Seventeenth of Tammuz Tisha B'Av Observances and events Seudah HaMafseket Texts Book of Lamentations Kinnot Book of Job Historic events Siege of Jerusalem ( AD 70 ) Alhambra Decree The Twelve Spies Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Book_of_Lamentations&oldid=802963467 '' Categories : 6th - century BC books Book of Lamentations Jeremiah Ketuvim Tisha B'Av Protocanonical books Hidden categories : Articles containing Hebrew - language text All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from October 2014 Articles with LibriVox links Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Wikisource Afrikaans Беларуская Boarisch Brezhoneg Català Cebuano Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Frysk Gaeilge Gàidhlig गोंयची कोंकणी / Gõychi Konknni 한국어 Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Basa Jawa ქართული Kiswahili Latina Lietuvių Magyar മലയാളം مصرى Mìng - dĕ̤ng - ngṳ̄ Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Runa Simi Русский Simple English Slovenčina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் Türkçe Українська اردو Vepsän kel ' Winaray ייִדיש Yorùbá 粵語 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 29 September 2017, at 16 : 08. 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Question: who wrote the book lamentations in the bible
Answer: probably originated from Judeans who remained in the land