Lamentations 5:3
New International Version
We have become fatherless, our mothers are widows.

New Living Translation
We are orphaned and fatherless. Our mothers are widowed.

English Standard Version
We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are like widows.

Berean Standard Bible
We have become fatherless orphans; our mothers are widows.

King James Bible
We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.

New King James Version
We have become orphans and waifs, Our mothers are like widows.

New American Standard Bible
We have become orphans, without a father; Our mothers are like widows.

NASB 1995
We have become orphans without a father, Our mothers are like widows.

NASB 1977
We have become orphans without a father, Our mothers are like widows.

Legacy Standard Bible
We have become orphans without a father; Our mothers are like widows.

Amplified Bible
We have become orphans without a father; Our mothers are like widows.

Christian Standard Bible
We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are widows.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are widows.

American Standard Version
We are orphans and fatherless; Our mothers are as widows.

Contemporary English Version
We are like children whose mothers are widows.

English Revised Version
We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
We are orphans without a father. Our mothers are like widows.

Good News Translation
Our fathers have been killed by the enemy, and now our mothers are widows.

International Standard Version
We are now orphans—without fathers— and our mothers are like widows.

Majority Standard Bible
We have become fatherless orphans; our mothers are widows.

NET Bible
We have become fatherless orphans; our mothers have become widows.

New Heart English Bible
We are orphans and fatherless. Our mothers are like widows.

Webster's Bible Translation
We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.

World English Bible
We are orphans and fatherless. Our mothers are as widows.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Orphans we have been—without a father, our mothers [are] as widows.

Young's Literal Translation
Orphans we have been -- without a father, our mothers are as widows.

Smith's Literal Translation
We were orphans, no father; our mothers as widows.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
We are become orphans without a father: our mothers are as widows.

Catholic Public Domain Version
We have become orphans without a father; our mothers are like widows.

New American Bible
We have become orphans, without fathers; our mothers are like widows.

New Revised Standard Version
We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are like widows.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
We have become orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
We were orphans without a father, and our mothers were as widows
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
We are become orphans and fatherless, Our mothers are as widows.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
we are become orphans, we have no father, our mothers are as widows.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
A Prayer for Restoration
2Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our houses to foreigners. 3We have become fatherless orphans; our mothers are widows. 4We must buy the water we drink; our wood comes at a price.…

Cross References
Exodus 22:22
You must not mistreat any widow or orphan.

Deuteronomy 10:18
He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing.

Psalm 68:5
A father of the fatherless and a defender of widows is God in His holy habitation.

Isaiah 1:17
Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.”

James 1:27
Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Jeremiah 49:11
Abandon your orphans; I will preserve their lives. Let your widows trust in Me.”

Hosea 14:3
Assyria will not save us, nor will we ride on horses. We will never again say, ‘Our gods!’ to the work of our own hands. For in You the fatherless find compassion.”

Zechariah 7:10
Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. And do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.’

Job 29:12
because I rescued the poor who cried out and the fatherless who had no helper.

Psalm 146:9
The LORD protects foreigners; He sustains the fatherless and the widow, but the ways of the wicked He frustrates.

John 14:18
I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

Matthew 23:37
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

Isaiah 9:17
Therefore the Lord takes no pleasure in their young men; He has no compassion on their fatherless and widows. For every one of them is godless and wicked, and every mouth speaks folly. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

Isaiah 10:2
to deprive the poor of fair treatment and withhold justice from the oppressed of My people, to make widows their prey and orphans their plunder.

Malachi 3:5
“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.


Treasury of Scripture

We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.

Exodus 22:24
And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

Jeremiah 18:21
Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.

Hosea 14:3
Asshur shall not save us; we will not ride upon horses: neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods: for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy.

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Lamentations 5
1. A complaint of Zion in prayer unto God.














We have become
This phrase indicates a transformation or change in status. In the Hebrew text, the verb used here is "הָיִינוּ" (hayinu), which is derived from the root "הָיָה" (hayah), meaning "to be" or "to become." This suggests a shift from a previous state of security and belonging to one of vulnerability and loss. Historically, this reflects the aftermath of the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem, where the people of Judah experienced a drastic change in their societal and familial structures.

orphans
The term "orphans" in Hebrew is "יָתוֹם" (yatom), which refers to children who have lost their parents. In ancient Israelite society, orphans were among the most vulnerable, often lacking protection and provision. The Bible frequently emphasizes God's concern for orphans, as seen in passages like Psalm 68:5, where God is described as "a father to the fatherless." This highlights the deep sense of abandonment and need for divine intervention felt by the people.

fatherless
The word "fatherless" is closely related to "orphans" and is often used interchangeably in the Hebrew Scriptures. The absence of a father in ancient Near Eastern culture meant a loss of leadership, provision, and protection. Fathers were the primary providers and protectors of the family, and their absence left families exposed to economic and social hardships. This reflects the broader spiritual and communal desolation experienced by the Israelites during the exile.

our mothers
The mention of "our mothers" brings a personal and familial dimension to the lament. In Hebrew, "אִמּוֹתֵינוּ" (immotenu) is used, emphasizing the collective experience of the community. Mothers, traditionally seen as nurturers and caregivers, are now depicted in a state of vulnerability. This highlights the breakdown of family structures and the pervasive impact of the national calamity on individual households.

are widows
The term "widows" in Hebrew is "אַלְמָנוֹת" (almanot). Widows, like orphans, were particularly vulnerable in ancient societies, often facing economic hardship and social marginalization. The Torah repeatedly commands care for widows, underscoring their need for protection and justice (Exodus 22:22-24). The imagery of widowed mothers in this verse underscores the complete devastation and helplessness experienced by the community, as they have lost their protectors and providers.

(3) Our mothers are as widows--i.e., their husbands, though living, were carried into exile, and they were as destitute as though they had been deprived of them by death. The Chaldee paraphrase gives the same meaning to the last clause also, "We are like orphans."

Verse 3. - We are orphans and fatherless; i.e. "We are like the most desolate of beings," as the Targum already explains it. Hence in the next clause the mothers of Israel ere likened to widows.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
We have become
הָיִ֙ינוּ֙ (hā·yî·nū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common plural
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

fatherless
וְאֵ֣ין (wə·’ên)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

orphans;
יְתוֹמִ֤ים (yə·ṯō·w·mîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 3490: A bereaved person

our mothers
אִמֹּתֵ֖ינוּ (’im·mō·ṯê·nū)
Noun - feminine plural construct | first person common plural
Strong's 517: A mother, )

are widows.
כְּאַלְמָנֽוֹת׃ (kə·’al·mā·nō·wṯ)
Preposition-k | Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 490: A widow, a desolate place


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OT Prophets: Lamentations 5:3 We are orphans and fatherless (Lam. La Lm)
Lamentations 5:2
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