Lamentations Chapter 3 · Verse 11

Authorized King James Version

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He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me desolate.

Original Language Analysis

דְּרָכַ֥י my ways H1870
דְּרָכַ֥י my ways
Strong's: H1870
Word #: 1 of 5
a road (as trodden); figuratively, a course of life or mode of action, often adverb
סוֹרֵ֛ר He hath turned aside H5493
סוֹרֵ֛ר He hath turned aside
Strong's: H5493
Word #: 2 of 5
to turn off (literally or figuratively)
וַֽיְפַשְּׁחֵ֖נִי and pulled me in pieces H6582
וַֽיְפַשְּׁחֵ֖נִי and pulled me in pieces
Strong's: H6582
Word #: 3 of 5
to tear in pieces
שָׂמַ֥נִי he hath made H7760
שָׂמַ֥נִי he hath made
Strong's: H7760
Word #: 4 of 5
to put (used in a great variety of applications, literal, figurative, inferentially, and elliptically)
שֹׁמֵֽם׃ me desolate H8074
שֹׁמֵֽם׃ me desolate
Strong's: H8074
Word #: 5 of 5
to stun (or intransitively, grow numb), i.e., devastate or (figuratively) stupefy (both usually in a passive sense)

Analysis & Commentary

God pulls victim off path like predator dragging prey. Total helplessness before divine power. Romans 9:19-21 addresses sovereignty questions.

Historical Context

Military conquest dragged people from homes to exile—literal fulfillment of being pulled off the path.

Questions for Reflection