Lamentations 3:20 (ASV)

Passage

My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is bowed down within me.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 3:18 And I said, My strength is perished, and mine expectation from Jehovah.

Lamentations 3:19 Remember mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall.

Lamentations 3:20 My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is bowed down within me.

Lamentations 3:21 This I recall to my mind; therefore have I hope.

Lamentations 3:22 [It is of] Jehovah`s lovingkindnesses that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "soul", "hath", "still", "remembrance", "bowed", "down", and "within". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "soul" and "hath", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "Remember mine affliction and my misery the..." into verse 21's "This I recall to my mind therefore...", so "soul" and "hath" belong inside that flow. In Lamentations context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

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