Lamentations 3:6 (ASV)

Passage

He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 3:4 My flesh and my skin hath he made old; he hath broken my bones.

Lamentations 3:5 He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and travail.

Lamentations 3:6 He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.

Lamentations 3:7 He hath walled me about, that I cannot go forth; he hath made my chain heavy.

Lamentations 3:8 Yea, when I cry, and call for help, he shutteth out my prayer.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hath", "dwell", "dark", "places", "been", "long", and "dead". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hath" and "dwell", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "He hath builded against me and compassed..." into verse 7's "He hath walled me about that I...", so "hath" and "dwell" 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 "hath" and "dwell" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.