Lamentations 1:4 (LSB)

Passage

The roads of Zion are in mourning Because no one comes to the appointed times. All her gates are desolate; Her priests are sighing, Her virgins are grieving, And she herself is bitter.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 1:2 She weeps bitterly in the night, And her tears are on her cheeks; She has none to comfort her Among all her lovers. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; They have become her enemies.

Lamentations 1:3 Judah has gone into exile because of affliction And because of great slavery; She sits among the nations, But she has found no rest; All her pursuers have overtaken her In the midst of distress.

Lamentations 1:4 The roads of Zion are in mourning Because no one comes to the appointed times. All her gates are desolate; Her priests are sighing, Her virgins are grieving, And she herself is bitter.

Lamentations 1:5 Her adversaries have become her masters; Her enemies are complacent; For Yahweh has caused her grief Because of the greatness of her transgressions; Her infants have gone away As captives before the adversary.

Lamentations 1:6 So all her majesty Has gone out from the daughter of Zion; Her princes have become like deer That have found no pasture; So they have fled without strength Before the pursuer.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "roads", "zion", "mourning", "comes", "appointed", "times", "gates", and "desolate". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "roads" and "zion", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Judah has gone into exile because of..." into verse 5's "Her adversaries have become her masters Her...", so "roads" and "zion" 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 "roads" and "zion" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.