Lamentations 1:1 (ASV)

Passage

How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! She is become as a widow, that was great among the nations! She that was a princess among the provinces is become tributary!

Nearby Context

Lamentations 1:1 How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! She is become as a widow, that was great among the nations! She that was a princess among the provinces is become tributary!

Lamentations 1:2 She weepeth sore in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks; Among all her lovers she hath none to comfort her: All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they are become her enemies.

Lamentations 1:3 Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude; She dwelleth among the nations, she findeth no rest: All her persecutors overtook her within the straits.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "doth", "city", "solitary", "full", "people", "become", "widow", and "great". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "doth" and "city", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "She weepeth sore in the night and...", so "doth" and "city" should be read forward into that movement. In Lamentations context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "doth" and "city" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.