Lamentations 3:3 (DBY)

Passage

Surely against me hath he turned again and again his hand all the day.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 3:1 I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

Lamentations 3:2 Me hath he led, and brought into darkness, and not into light.

Lamentations 3:3 Surely against me hath he turned again and again his hand all the day.

Lamentations 3:4 My flesh and my skin hath he wasted away, he hath broken my bones.

Lamentations 3:5 He hath built against me, and encompassed [me] with gall and toil.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "surely", "against", "hath", "turned", and "hand". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "surely" and "against", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "Me hath he led and brought into..." into verse 4's "My flesh and my skin hath he...", so "surely" and "against" 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 "surely" and "against" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.