Lamentations 2:6 kjv
And he hath violently taken away his tabernacle, as if it were of a garden: he hath destroyed his places of the assembly: the LORD hath caused the solemn feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion, and hath despised in the indignation of his anger the king and the priest.
Lamentations 2:6 nkjv
He has done violence to His tabernacle, As if it were a garden; He has destroyed His place of assembly; The LORD has caused The appointed feasts and Sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion. In His burning indignation He has spurned the king and the priest.
Lamentations 2:6 niv
He has laid waste his dwelling like a garden; he has destroyed his place of meeting. The LORD has made Zion forget her appointed festivals and her Sabbaths; in his fierce anger he has spurned both king and priest.
Lamentations 2:6 esv
He has laid waste his booth like a garden, laid in ruins his meeting place; the LORD has made Zion forget festival and Sabbath, and in his fierce indignation has spurned king and priest.
Lamentations 2:6 nlt
He has broken down his Temple
as though it were merely a garden shelter.
The LORD has blotted out all memory
of the holy festivals and Sabbath days.
Kings and priests fall together
before his fierce anger.
Lamentations 2 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lam 2:6 | He has… scorned its appointed feasts and Sabbaths in Zion. | Lam 2:6 |
| Deut 32:13 | He made him ride on the high places of the earth… | Deut 32:13 |
| Isa 3:26 | Her gates will lament and mourn; she will be desolate... | Isa 3:26 |
| Isa 34:16 | Seek and read from the book of the Lord: Not one of these will be missing… | Isa 34:16 |
| Isa 63:3 | "I have trodden the winepress alone…" | Isa 63:3 |
| Jer 14:7 | "Though our iniquities testify against us… for our backslidings are many…" | Jer 14:7 |
| Jer 30:14 | All your lovers have forgotten you; they do not seek you. | Jer 30:14 |
| Jer 33:16 | Jerusalem will dwell securely. | Jer 33:16 |
| Ezek 24:21 | I will desecrate my sanctuary. | Ezek 24:21 |
| Hosea 2:11 | I will stop all her celebrations: her feasts, her New Moons, her Sabbaths—all her appointed festivals. | Hosea 2:11 |
| Joel 1:14 | Declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly… | Joel 1:14 |
| Joel 2:15 | Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. | Joel 2:15 |
| Joel 2:28-29 | I will pour out my Spirit on all people. | Joel 2:28-29 |
| Amos 5:21 | "I hate, I despise your religious festivals…" | Amos 5:21 |
| Amos 8:10 | I will turn your feasts into mourning and all your songs into lament. | Amos 8:10 |
| Micah 3:4 | Then they will cry out to the Lord, but he will not answer them. | Micah 3:4 |
| Zeph 3:1-2 | Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, to the tyrannical city! She does not heed the command… | Zeph 3:1-2 |
| Zeph 3:8 | Therefore wait for me," declares the Lord, "for that day of plunder, when I gather nations… | Zeph 3:8 |
| Zech 14:17 | If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty… | Zech 14:17 |
| Matt 23:37-38 | "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets… How often I wanted to gather your children together…" | Matt 23:37-38 |
| Luke 13:34-35 | "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem… How often I have longed to gather your children together…" | Luke 13:34-35 |
| John 14:16 | And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate… | John 14:16 |
| 1 Cor 5:7-8 | Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new unleavened batch… | 1 Cor 5:7-8 |
| Rev 18:10, 17, 19 | "Woe! Woe to you, great city, dressed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet… they cried out as they saw the smoke… |
Lamentations 2 verses
Lamentations 2 6 Meaning
The Lord has treated Jerusalem as though He were: (1) forcefully defiled and angered against it; (2) utterly disregarded its appointed festivals, Sabbaths, and sacred times; and (3) displayed His fierce anger and wrath towards it, showing no mercy or favor. The city's Temple, once a place of God's presence, has been treated with contempt.
Lamentations 2 6 Context
Lamentations 2 vividly portrays the devastating consequences of Jerusalem's sin and God's judgment. The chapter describes the destruction of the city by an enemy, the suffering of its people, and the desolation of the Temple. Verse 6 specifically focuses on the obliteration of Jerusalem's religious life and sacred observances as a direct result of God's anger. The prophet Jeremiah, the likely author, writes this lament in the aftermath of the Babylonian conquest in 586 BC. The original audience, survivors of this catastrophe, are hearing a stark reminder of why God allowed this to happen. This includes their straying from God's commands and His covenant.
Lamentations 2 6 Word Analysis
- as though (Hebrew: ka'asher) - A conjunction introducing a comparison, highlighting how God has acted towards Jerusalem like someone acting with utter disdain.
- shelter/booth (Hebrew: sukkah) - Refers to a booth or hut, often associated with the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), a joyous harvest festival. The removal of this suggests the utter disruption of appointed times.
- appointed festival (Hebrew: mo'ed) - A designated or appointed time or season, a sacred assembly or feast. The implication is that God has canceled or made void all such occasions.
- Sabbaths (Hebrew: shabbat) - Specifically the weekly day of rest ordained by God, a covenant sign. Its negation signifies a complete break from covenant rhythms.
- Zion (Hebrew: Tziyon) - A poetic name for Jerusalem, often representing the whole people of God and His dwelling place.
- forgotten (Hebrew: shachach) - To neglect, disregard, or fail to remember. Here it implies God has seemingly forgotten His people and their covenant obligations, though the true sense is that the people have forgotten God.
- Tabernacles/Feasts (Hebrew: chagg) - A general term for a pilgrimage festival, like Passover or the Feast of Weeks. The absence of these emphasizes the total suspension of communal worship.
- appoint (Hebrew: qara - root) - To call out, summon, or appoint. Here it suggests God has not called them together for their sacred times.
- Lord (Hebrew: YHWH) - The covenant name of God, emphasizing His faithfulness, but also His power to judge.
- contempt (Hebrew: baz - root) - To despise, treat with scorn, or disdain. This conveys God's profound disapproval and rejection of the covenant community.
- fierce anger (Hebrew: charon) - Burning anger, indignation.
- wroth/anger (Hebrew: 'ebrah) - Fury, burning wrath. This indicates the intensity of God's judgment.
Group Analysis:
- "treated as though it were... removed... the feast and Sabbath": This signifies a complete dismantling of the religious calendar and divine appointments. It is not that God ceased to observe them, but that the divine favor and communal practice of these times in Zion were nullified due to sin.
- "forgotten in Zion": This captures the abandonment and desolation of the holy city, making remembrance and observance of sacred times impossible.
- "caused his festivals and Sabbaths to be forgotten": This phrase, and the surrounding expressions, points to God's active withdrawal of His presence and blessing from the very institutions He Himself ordained, a consequence of their disobedience.
- "rejected and utterly detested the sanctuary": This powerful statement reveals the ultimate consequence of prolonged sin – the abandonment of God's sacred dwelling place, His holy Temple.
Lamentations 2 6 Bonus Section
The Hebrew word sukkah (booth) is particularly poignant because it is intrinsically linked to the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), a celebration of God's provision and dwelling with His people during the wilderness journey. Its mention here signifies the obliteration of God's presence and provision for His people. Furthermore, the Hebrew concept of "forgetting" is significant in the Old Testament. It’s not mere lapse of memory but a moral failure, often implying unfaithfulness and neglect of duty. When God is said to have "forgotten" Zion's feasts, it carries the weight of His judgment due to His people's unfaithfulness. The rejection of the sanctuary (the Temple) is the zenith of God's judgment, marking a total abandonment of the place of His manifested presence due to the sin that had defiled it.
Lamentations 2 6 Commentary
The lament over Zion's destruction extends to the desecration of its most sacred observances. God, who established Israel's festivals and Sabbaths as perpetual reminders of His covenant, has, in His judgment, caused these to be seemingly erased from Jerusalem's life. This isn't an abandonment of His instituted practices, but a profound judgment upon a people who had failed to honor them or the God they represented. The enemy's conquest meant no joyful pilgrimage to Zion, no remembrance of the Sabbath rest, no sacred assemblies. The very calendar, meant to revolve around God, became irrelevant in the face of utter desolation and divine wrath. This serves as a powerful reminder that true worship and observance are tied to a right relationship with God. When that relationship is broken by sin, even the divinely appointed times become expressions of loss and sorrow, pointing to a covenant in tatters.
- The cessation of feasts highlights the loss of community and joy.
- The nullification of Sabbaths signifies the absence of rest and covenant peace.
- The removal of Zion's sacred times underscores the people's separation from God's presence.