Lamentations 5:4 (ASV)

Passage

We have drunken our water for money; Our wood is sold unto us.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 5:2 Our inheritance is turned unto strangers, Our houses unto aliens.

Lamentations 5:3 We are orphans and fatherless; Our mothers are as widows.

Lamentations 5:4 We have drunken our water for money; Our wood is sold unto us.

Lamentations 5:5 Our pursuers are upon our necks: We are weary, and have no rest.

Lamentations 5:6 We have given the hand to the Egyptians, And to the Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "drunken", "water", "money", "wood", and "sold". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "drunken" and "water", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "We are orphans and fatherless Our mothers..." into verse 5's "Our pursuers are upon our necks We...", so "drunken" and "water" 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 "drunken" and "water" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.