Lamentations 3:6 kjv
He hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old.
Lamentations 3:6 nkjv
He has set me in dark places Like the dead of long ago.
Lamentations 3:6 niv
He has made me dwell in darkness like those long dead.
Lamentations 3:6 esv
he has made me dwell in darkness like the dead of long ago.
Lamentations 3:6 nlt
He has buried me in a dark place,
like those long dead.
Lamentations 3 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lamentations 3:6 | "He has made me dwell in dark places, as those who are long dead." | Chapter context |
| Lamentations 1:1 | "How lonely sits the city that was full of people!" | Isolation |
| Lamentations 2:1 | "How the Lord has covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in His anger!" | Divine judgment |
| Lamentations 4:1 | "How has the gold become dull! How has the most pure gold become changed! The stones of the sanctuary are poured out at the head of every street." | Desecration and loss |
| Lamentations 5:17 | "For this our heart is faint, for these things our eyes are dim." | Deep sorrow |
| Psalm 22:1 | "My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, and from the words of My groaning?" | Forsakenness |
| Psalm 88:5 | "You have laid me in the lowest pit, in dark places, in the depths." | Similar imagery of depth and darkness |
| Psalm 143:3 | "For the enemy has persecuted my soul; He has crushed my life to the ground; He has made me dwell in dark places, like those who have been long dead." | Direct parallel |
| Isaiah 14:15 | "Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit." | Descent into the underworld |
| Jeremiah 20:18 | "Why did I not perish at birth, coming forth from the womb and never again seeing light?" | Expressing despair and wishing for non-existence |
| Job 10:21-22 | "Before I go to the place of no return, To the land of darkness and shadow of death, A land of the shadow of death, like darkness; without any order, and where the light is as darkness." | Description of death's abode |
| John 12:46 | "I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness." | Contrast with spiritual light |
| 1 Peter 2:9 | "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you might proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;" | Transition from darkness to light |
| Revelation 1:18 | "But I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death." | Christ's victory over death and darkness |
| Matthew 27:45 | "Now from the sixth hour darkness will come over all the land until the ninth hour." | Experiencing divine withdrawal |
| Luke 23:44-45 | "Now it was about the sixth hour, and a darkness came over all the land until the ninth hour. Then the sun was eclipsed, and the veil of the temple was torn in two." | Spiritual desolation during crucifixion |
| 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 | "We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." | Enduring hardship without complete despair |
| Philippians 3:10 | "that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death," | Fellowship in suffering |
| Hebrews 11:13 | "These all died in faith, not receiving the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth." | Pilgrimage in hardship |
| Psalm 44:23 | "Awake, O Lord! Why do You sleep, O Lord? Arise! Do not cast Us off forever." | Plea for divine intervention |
| Isaiah 58:10 | "If you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday." | Divine comfort in distress |
Lamentations 3 verses
Lamentations 3 6 Meaning
Lamentations 3:6 states, "He has made me dwell in dark places, as those who are long dead." This verse vividly describes the extreme suffering and desolation experienced by the speaker, portraying a state of profound hopelessness and abandonment. It signifies being placed in a condition that is as grim and final as the realm of the departed.
Lamentations 3 6 Context
Lamentations chapter 3 chronicles the personal suffering of the prophet Jeremiah, likely reflecting on the destruction of Jerusalem and the Babylonian exile. This verse emerges within a broader section where Jeremiah details the depths of his despair and God's apparent wrath. The entire book grapples with the consequences of sin, the justice of God, and the enduring hope for restoration, all viewed through the lens of national catastrophe and personal agony. Jeremiah uses intense imagery to convey the total desolation brought upon the people and himself.
Lamentations 3 6 Word Analysis
- He (Hebrew: הוּא, hu) - Refers to God, emphasizing His active role in placing the speaker in such a dire condition, though within the context of divine discipline and judgment.
- has made me dwell (Hebrew: הוֹשִׁיבַנִי, hoshi
veni) - The hiphil causative stem ofuv (to sit or dwell) implies an imposed residence, not chosen. God is the agent who has settled the speaker. - in dark places (Hebrew: בְּחֹשֶׁךְ, b'choshek) -
choshekdenotes darkness, gloom, and often, metaphorically, distress, misery, ignorance, or the underworld. It conveys a sense of being hidden, forgotten, or devoid of divine presence and hope. - as (Hebrew: כְּ, k') - A preposition of comparison, linking the current state to the subsequent description.
- those who (Hebrew: ַמת, met) - Literally "the dead."
- are long dead (Hebrew: ם ימֹו ת, mōth dimmōth) - This phrase signifies those who have been dead for a very long time, implying finality, permanence, and absence from the world of the living, perhaps even forgotten by time. The repetition of "dead" (met dimmoth) emphasizes this absolute finality and forgottenness.
Lamentations 3 6 Bonus Section
The imagery of dwelling in "dark places" is a profound metaphor for spiritual and emotional desolation. In the ancient Near East, darkness was often associated with the underworld (Sheol), a place of silence, dust, and no remembrance. Lamentations 3:6 can be understood as an expression of experiencing a foretaste of the grave, a complete lack of any sign of divine favor or presence. The suffering described here is so extreme that it surpasses normal affliction, entering a realm akin to final extinction. The comparison to "long dead" individuals underscores the depth of the isolation and the perceived permanence of the state of misery. This intense lament finds echoes in Job's lamentations and Jesus' cry from the cross, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" showing a continuity of human suffering and the cry for divine mercy.
Lamentations 3 6 Commentary
This verse conveys an overwhelming sense of abandonment and irreversible suffering. The "dark places" are not merely physical but spiritual and existential, where divine light and life seem extinguished. To be compared to "those who are long dead" means to exist in a state of utter hopelessness, as if life has already ceased, and memory has faded. This state reflects the devastation of war, exile, and the perceived withdrawal of God's favor, placing the individual in a condition likened to the finality of the grave, devoid of any prospect of immediate relief or revival. It encapsulates a deep personal crisis that mirrors the national calamity. The prophet’s words, while expressing extreme suffering, do not sever the connection with God but rather engage God directly in this description of His actions.