Lamentations 1 10

Lamentations 1:10 kjv

The adversary hath spread out his hand upon all her pleasant things: for she hath seen that the heathen entered into her sanctuary, whom thou didst command that they should not enter into thy congregation.

Lamentations 1:10 nkjv

The adversary has spread his hand Over all her pleasant things; For she has seen the nations enter her sanctuary, Those whom You commanded Not to enter Your assembly.

Lamentations 1:10 niv

The enemy laid hands on all her treasures; she saw pagan nations enter her sanctuary? those you had forbidden to enter your assembly.

Lamentations 1:10 esv

The enemy has stretched out his hands over all her precious things; for she has seen the nations enter her sanctuary, those whom you forbade to enter your congregation.

Lamentations 1:10 nlt

The enemy has plundered her completely,
taking every precious thing she owns.
She has seen foreigners violate her sacred Temple,
the place the LORD had forbidden them to enter.

Lamentations 1 verses

Lamentations 1 10 Meaning

Lamentations 1:10 vividly portrays the utter devastation and deep humiliation experienced by Jerusalem following its fall to Babylon. The verse describes an enemy seizing everything precious, culminating in the profound horror of foreign nations entering and defiling the Temple, God's sacred dwelling place. This act was a direct violation of God's explicit commands concerning the purity of His assembly, highlighting the depth of divine judgment and Jerusalem's suffering.

Lamentations 1 10 Context

Lamentations 1:10 stands amidst Jerusalem's mournful elegy following its destruction by Babylon in 586 BC. Chapter 1 primarily describes the city as a desolate widow, weeping in solitude. Prior verses depict her forsaken by allies, suffering siege and famine, with her people carried into captivity. This particular verse deepens the pain by focusing on the defilement of her most sacred possession, the Temple, a direct consequence of her great sin. Historically, the Babylonian conquest under Nebuchadnezzar involved not only widespread destruction and slaughter but also the thorough plundering of Jerusalem's wealth, including the Temple treasury and its holy vessels. The entry of foreign, idolatrous nations into the sanctuary, the symbolic dwelling place of God's presence, was the ultimate profanation and a sign that God's covenant protection had been utterly removed due to Israel's disobedience.

Lamentations 1 10 Word analysis

• The adversary (צָר, tzar): Literally meaning 'straitness', 'distress', or 'foe'. Here, it specifically refers to the conquering Babylonians. The word evokes not just an enemy, but one that causes immense pressure, constriction, and suffering. It implies that Judah's suffering comes from a direct, oppressive source.
• has spread out (פָּרַשׁ, paras): Denotes an action of stretching out or extending, often violently. Here, applied to the hand, it means taking possession, seizing, grasping with intent to claim or destroy. It conveys aggressive and expansive appropriation.
• his hand (יָדוֹ, yado): The instrument of power and control. "Spreading out the hand" signifies hostile invasion and forceful taking of possessions, demonstrating complete domination.
• over all (עַל כָּל־, al kol): Emphasizes totality and comprehensiveness. Nothing was spared; the enemy's grasp extended to every single item.
• her precious things (מַחֲמַדֶּיהָ, machamadeyha): This term refers to desirable things, treasures, delightful objects, or luxuries. It encompasses all physical wealth—gold, silver, Temple vessels, royal possessions—but also symbolically the very fabric of national life, beauty, and heritage. It reflects everything that was valuable and cherished by Jerusalem.
• for (כִּי, ki): This conjunction serves as a causal link, introducing the reason for the adversary's actions and Jerusalem's humiliation. The defilement of the sanctuary is the deepest wound, explaining the full extent of the calamity.
• she has seen (רָאֲתָה, ra'atah): Emphasizes Jerusalem's direct, traumatic witness to her own shame. It is not merely that these things happened, but that she was forced to endure the horror visually, deepening the psychological and emotional suffering.
• the nations (גוֹיִם, goyim): Refers to Gentiles or foreign peoples. In the Old Testament context, these were non-Israelite, often polytheistic nations, inherently viewed as separate from God's covenant people. Their presence in the Temple was a gross defilement.
• enter (בָּאוּ, ba'u): To come or go in. The act of entry itself into the holy space was the ultimate transgression.
• her sanctuary (מִקְדָּשָׁהּ, miqdashah): The holy place, specifically the Temple in Jerusalem. This was considered the dwelling place of God's presence (Shekinah), the most sacred site in Israel, representing the covenant and God's unique relationship with His people. Its desecration symbolized the breaking of that bond.
• those whom (אֲשֶׁר, asher): Links back to "the nations," specifying who these prohibited entrants were.
• You commanded (צִוִּיתָ, tzivitah): Directly references God's explicit divine instruction, particularly the law found in Deuteronomy 23:3-6 regarding the exclusion of certain foreign nations from the assembly of the LORD. This phrase underscores that the violation was not merely against Israel's customs but against God's own holy decrees. It implies God, in His judgment, allowed His own command to be overridden due to Israel's unfaithfulness.
• that they should not enter (לֹא יָבֹאוּ, lo yavo'u): A clear negative prohibition; they were strictly forbidden.
• Your assembly (בִקְהָלֶךָ, bikhhalcha): The congregation (קָהָל, qahal) of Israel, referring to the formal gathering or community of the LORD. While Deut 23 specified "assembly," here it applies to the sanctuary. This indicates that the sanctity of the entire covenant community, gathered or represented by the Temple, was violated.

Words-group analysis:

• "The adversary has spread out his hand over all her precious things": This phrase paints a picture of complete devastation and systematic plunder. It conveys not just the loss of physical treasures but also the profound shame and helplessness of Jerusalem watching everything valuable being stripped away. The act is aggressive, deliberate, and comprehensive.
• "for she has seen the nations enter her sanctuary": The word "for" highlights that the ultimate cause and reason for this spreading of hands and deep distress is the unspeakable defilement of the holiest space. This sacred violation outweighs even the material losses. The phrase "she has seen" emphasizes Jerusalem's agonizing, personal witnessing of its own disgrace and sacrilege, adding to the trauma. The entry of goyim (nations) signifies the total breach of the sacred boundaries that protected the divine presence.
• "those whom You commanded that they should not enter Your assembly": This final clause magnifies the theological gravity of the defilement. It appeals directly to God's previous instructions, turning the desecration into an event of cosmic significance. It highlights that even God's own established laws seemed to be overturned, or allowed to be trampled, demonstrating the profound depth of Jerusalem's sin and God's severe judgment. The fact that the prohibition was "Your command" means it was not just a human law broken but a divine covenant neglected, allowing divine consequences to ensue.

Lamentations 1 10 Bonus section

The verse underscores a core theological truth: when a people abandon God's covenant and walk in persistent rebellion, even God's most solemn protective commands can be 'lifted' to execute righteous judgment. It illustrates how Jerusalem's internal spiritual corruption opened the way for external physical desecration. This event served as a stark reminder to Judah that their perceived invincibility, often linked to the physical presence of the Temple (cf. Jer 7:4), was illusory when their lives were not aligned with God's will.

Lamentations 1 10 Commentary

Lamentations 1:10 expresses the pinnacle of Jerusalem's anguish, marking the violation of her sacred identity. The city laments not only the physical loss of wealth but the deeper indignity of her holiest place, the Temple, being overrun by uncircumcised gentiles. This was an abhorrent breach of God's covenantal boundaries, directly contravening the laws given through Moses that specified who could enter the divine assembly. The tragedy lies not just in the Temple's destruction but in the profound sense of betrayal and abandonment, where God's own protective decrees were, by divine allowance, overridden due to Israel's chronic disobedience. The verse highlights that the most devastating consequence of sin is the forfeiture of divine protection and the desecration of that which is most sacred.