Lamentations 5:13 (YLT)

Passage

Young men to grind they have taken, And youths with wood have stumbled.

Nearby Context

Lamentations 5:11 Wives in Zion they have humbled, Virgins--in cities of Judah.

Lamentations 5:12 Princes by their hand have been hanged, The faces of elders have not been honoured.

Lamentations 5:13 Young men to grind they have taken, And youths with wood have stumbled.

Lamentations 5:14 The aged from the gate have ceased, Young men from their song.

Lamentations 5:15 Ceased hath the joy of our heart, Turned to mourning hath been our dancing.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "young", "grind", "taken", "youths", "wood", and "stumbled". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "young" and "grind", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "Princes by their hand have been hanged..." into verse 14's "The aged from the gate have ceased...", so "young" and "grind" 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 "young" and "grind" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.