Lamentations 3:1
New International Version
I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of the LORD’s wrath.

New Living Translation
I am the one who has seen the afflictions that come from the rod of the LORD’s anger.

English Standard Version
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath;

Berean Standard Bible
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath.

King James Bible
I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

New King James Version
I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of His wrath.

New American Standard Bible
I am the man who has seen misery Because of the rod of His wrath.

NASB 1995
I am the man who has seen affliction Because of the rod of His wrath.

NASB 1977
I am the man who has seen affliction Because of the rod of His wrath.

Legacy Standard Bible
I am the man who has seen affliction Because of the rod of His wrath.

Amplified Bible
I am [Jeremiah] the man who has seen affliction Because of the rod of His wrath.

Christian Standard Bible
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath.

American Standard Version
I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

Contemporary English Version
I have suffered much because God was angry.

English Revised Version
I AM the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"I am the man who has experienced suffering under the rod of God's fury.

Good News Translation
I am one who knows what it is to be punished by God.

International Standard Version
I am a man familiar with affliction— under the rod of God's anger.

Majority Standard Bible
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath.

NET Bible
I am the man who has experienced affliction from the rod of his wrath.

New Heart English Bible
I am the man that has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

Webster's Bible Translation
I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

World English Bible
I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
[ALEPH-BET] I [am] the man [who] has seen affliction "" By the rod of His wrath.

Young's Literal Translation
I am the man who hath seen affliction By the rod of His wrath.

Smith's Literal Translation
I the man seeing affliction by the rod of his wrath.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Aleph. I am the man that see my poverty by the rod of his indignation.

Catholic Public Domain Version
ALEPH. I am a man watching my own poverty by the rod of his indignation.

New American Bible
I am one who has known affliction under the rod of God’s anger,

New Revised Standard Version
I am one who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath;
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
O MIGHTY God, see my affliction; I am chastised by the rod of his wrath.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Aleph God The Mighty One saw my oppression with the rod of his wrath
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
I am the man that hath seen affliction By the rod of His wrath.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
ALEPH. I am the man that sees poverty, through the rod of his wrath upon me.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Jeremiah's Afflictions
1I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath. 2He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness instead of light.…

Cross References
Isaiah 53:3-5
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. / Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. / But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

Job 3:20-26
Why is light given to the miserable, and life to the bitter of soul, / who long for death that does not come, and search for it like hidden treasure, / who rejoice and greatly exult when they reach the grave? ...

Psalm 88:6-7
You have laid me in the lowest Pit, in the darkest of the depths. / Your wrath weighs heavily upon me; all Your waves have submerged me. Selah

Jeremiah 15:17-18
I never sat with the band of revelers, nor did I celebrate with them. Because Your hand was on me, I sat alone, for You have filled me with indignation. / Why is my pain unending, and my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? You have indeed become like a mirage to me—water that is not there.

2 Corinthians 1:8-9
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the hardships we encountered in the province of Asia. We were under a burden far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. / Indeed, we felt we were under the sentence of death, in order that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God, who raises the dead.

Psalm 22:1-2
For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning? / I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.

Job 19:21-22
Have pity on me, my friends, have pity, for the hand of God has struck me. / Why do you persecute me as God does? Will you never get enough of my flesh?

Matthew 26:38-39
Then He said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with Me.” / Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

Psalm 38:6-8
I am bent and brought low; all day long I go about mourning. / For my loins are full of burning pain, and no soundness remains in my body. / I am numb and badly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart.

2 Corinthians 4:8-10
We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; / persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. / We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.

Isaiah 50:6
I offered My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who tore out My beard. I did not hide My face from scorn and spittle.

Psalm 102:3-5
For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like glowing embers. / My heart is afflicted, and withered like grass; I even forget to eat my bread. / Through my loud groaning my skin hangs on my bones.

Hebrews 5:7-8
During the days of Jesus’ earthly life, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence. / Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from what He suffered.

Job 30:16-19
And now my soul is poured out within me; days of affliction grip me. / Night pierces my bones, and my gnawing pains never rest. / With great force He grasps my garment; He seizes me by the collar of my tunic. ...

Mark 14:33-34
He took with Him Peter, James, and John, and began to be deeply troubled and distressed. / Then He said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch.”


Treasury of Scripture

I AM the man that has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

the man

Lamentations 1:12-14
Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger…

Job 19:21
Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends; for the hand of God hath touched me.

Psalm 71:20
Thou, which hast shewed me great and sore troubles, shalt quicken me again, and shalt bring me up again from the depths of the earth.

his wrath.

Jump to Previous
Affliction Rod Trouble Wrath
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Affliction Rod Trouble Wrath
Lamentations 3
1. The prophet bewails his own calamities
22. By the mercies of God, he nourishes his hope
37. He acknowledges God's justice
55. He prays for deliverance
64. And vengeance on his enemies














I am the man
This phrase introduces a deeply personal lament. The Hebrew word for "man" here is "geber," which often denotes a strong or mighty man, yet in this context, it underscores vulnerability and suffering. The speaker, traditionally understood to be the prophet Jeremiah, identifies himself as the one experiencing profound distress. This personal identification invites readers to empathize with the speaker's plight, reflecting the universal human experience of suffering.

who has seen affliction
The Hebrew word for "seen" is "ra'ah," which implies not just visual sight but experiential knowledge. The affliction is not merely observed; it is deeply felt and endured. "Affliction" translates from "oni," indicating misery, poverty, or oppression. This suggests a comprehensive suffering that affects every aspect of life. Historically, this affliction is tied to the Babylonian siege and destruction of Jerusalem, a time of immense hardship for the Israelites.

under the rod
The "rod" symbolizes discipline and correction, often used in the context of divine chastisement. The Hebrew word "shebet" can refer to a staff or scepter, indicating authority. Here, it represents God's corrective measures towards His people. This imagery is consistent with the biblical theme of God as a shepherd who uses the rod to guide and correct His flock, emphasizing His sovereignty and the purpose behind the suffering.

of His wrath
"Wrath" in Hebrew is "chemah," denoting intense anger or indignation. In the biblical context, God's wrath is a response to sin and disobedience, reflecting His holiness and justice. The phrase underscores the theological understanding that the suffering experienced is not random but a direct consequence of the nation's covenantal unfaithfulness. Yet, within this expression of divine wrath, there is an implicit call to repentance and restoration, aligning with the broader biblical narrative of redemption.

(1) I am the man.--The lamentation is one of more intense personality. For that very reason it has been the true inheritance of all mourners, however widely different in time, country, circumstance, whose sorrows have approximated to that intensity.

The rod of his wrath.--The "wrath" is obviously that of Jehovah (comp. Proverbs 22:8; Isaiah 10:5), but there is something significant in the fact that He is not named.

Verses 1-21. - MONOLOGUE SPOKEN BY AN INDIVIDUAL BELIEVER WHOSE FATE IS BOUND UP WITH THAT OF THE NATION; OR PERHAPS BY THE NATION PERSONIFIED (see Introduction). Verse 1. - Seen. "To see" in Hebrew often means "to experience;" e.g. Jeremiah 5:12; Psalm 16:10; Ecclesiastes 8:16. By the rod of his wrath. The idea is, not that Babylon has humbled Israel as Jehovah's instrument, but that God himself has brought these troubles upon his people. "He had led me, hath hedged me about," etc.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
I
אֲנִ֤י (’ă·nî)
Pronoun - first person common singular
Strong's 589: I

am the man
הַגֶּ֙בֶר֙ (hag·ge·ḇer)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1397: A valiant man, warrior, a person simply

who has seen
רָאָ֣ה (rā·’āh)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7200: To see

affliction
עֳנִ֔י (‘o·nî)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6040: Affliction, poverty

under the rod
בְּשֵׁ֖בֶט (bə·šê·ḇeṭ)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 7626: Rod, staff, club, scepter, tribe

of [God’s] wrath.
עֶבְרָתֽוֹ׃ (‘eḇ·rā·ṯōw)
Noun - feminine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5678: Overflow, arrogance, fury


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OT Prophets: Lamentations 3:1 I am the man that has seen (Lam. La Lm)
Lamentations 2:22
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