Lamentations 3:16 (KJV)

Passage

He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 3:14 I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day.

Lamentations 3:15 He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood.

Lamentations 3:16 He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes.

Lamentations 3:17 And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgat prosperity.

Lamentations 3:18 And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the LORD:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hath", "broken", "teeth", "gravel", "stones", "covered", and "ashes". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hath" and "broken", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "He hath filled me with bitterness he..." into verse 17's "And thou hast removed my soul far...", so "hath" and "broken" 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 "broken" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.