Lamentations 3:32

3:32 Though he causes us ¹  grief, he then has compassion on us ² 

according to the abundance of his loyal kindness. ³ 

Lamentations 3:39

3:39 Why should any living person ⁴  complain

when punished for his sins? ⁵ 

[3:32]  ¹ tn Heb “Although he has caused grief.” The word “us” is added in the translation.

[3:32]  ² tn Heb “He will have compassion.” The words “on us” are added in the translation.

[3:32]  ³ tc The Kethib preserves the singular form חַסְדּוֹ (khasdo, “his kindness”), also reflected in the LXX and Aramaic Targum. The Qere reads the plural form חֲסָדָיו (khasadayv, “his kindnesses”) which is reflected in the Latin Vulgate.

[3:39]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew word here is אָדָם (’adam) which can mean “man” or “person.” The second half of the line is more personalized to the speaking voice of the defeated soldier using גֶּבֶר (gever, “man”). See the note at 3:1.

[3:39]  ⁵ tc Kethib reads the singular חֶטְאוֹ (khet’o, “his sin”), which is reflected in the LXX. Qere reads the plural חֲטָאָיו (khata’ayv, “his sins”) which is preserved in many medieval Hebrew mss and reflected in the other early versions (Aramaic Targum, Syriac Peshitta, Latin Vulgate). The external and internal evidence are not decisive in favor of either reading.