Lamentations 3:65-66

3:65 Give them a distraught heart;

may your curse be on them!

3:66 Pursue them in anger and eradicate them

from under the Lord’s heaven.


tn The noun מְגִנַּה (mÿginnah) is a hapax legomenon. Its meaning is debated; earlier lexicographers suggested that it meant “covering” (BDB 171 s.v.), but more recent lexicons suggest “shamelessness” or “insanity” (HALOT 546 s.v.). The translation is based on the term being parallel to “curse” and needing to relate to “heart.” Cf. NRSV “anguish of heart.”

tn Heb “pursue.” The accusative direct object is implied in the Hebrew, and inserted in the translation.