Lamentations 2:11-12
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This isn't just Jeremiah describing his tears; the text uses intense physical imagery like "bowels are troubled" and "liver is poured out" to show that his overwhelming grief has literally broken him down to his core. This visceral description reveals that the prophet's sorrow isn't merely an emotional reaction but a profound, gut-wrenching empathy with the suffering of his people, especially the innocent babies perishing in the streets.
My eyes are spent with weeping; my stomach churns; my bile is poured out to the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because infants and babies faint in the streets of the city. They cry to their mothers, “Where is bread and wine?” as they faint like a wounded man in the streets of the city, as their life is poured out on their mothers’ bosom.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jeremiah, speaking in the first person here, describes the raw, physical toll the devastation of Jerusalem is taking on him. He's not just intellectually sad; his entire body is reacting to the horror, especially the sight of starving infants and babies collapsing in the streets. This visceral expression of grief flows directly from witnessing the complete destruction and ruin of his people, which is the central theme of this chapter.
When sorrow hits, it's not just our minds that feel it; our bodies ache too. Jeremiah's words paint a vivid picture of this physical toll.
Jeremiah's description in Lamentations 2:11 isn't just poetic flair; it's a raw expression of deep physical distress tied to emotional agony.
This profound physical reaction underscores the immense weight of the destruction and the prophet's empathy for his people.
What kind of destruction causes a prophet to feel this way? It's the suffering of the most vulnerable that breaks his heart.
The profound sorrow expressed in Lamentations 2:11 is directly triggered by the suffering of the most defenseless members of society.
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Jeremiah's pain is amplified because he witnesses not just military defeat, but the utter ruin of innocent lives, a sight that would deeply wound anyone with compassion.
Understand the original words
bath ‘ammi · Hebrew Noun phrase
Refers to the collective people of Judah or Jerusalem, often personified as a woman enduring judgment or suffering. This metaphor emphasizes the intimate, covenantal relationship between God and His people, as well as their collective vulnerability.
The profound sorrow expressed in this verse is directly tied to the devastating fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC. The prophet Jeremiah's visceral language reflects the unimaginable horror of witnessing his people, including the most vulnerable infants, perish during the brutal siege and its aftermath.
c. 627 BC
Jeremiah begins prophetic ministry
Jeremiah starts his ministry during a time of growing instability in Judah, warning of impending judgment.
605 BC
First Babylonian deportation
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon begins deporting Judean elites, including Daniel, to Babylon.
597 BC
Second Babylonian deportation
Another significant deportation occurs, taking King Jehoiachin and thousands more Judeans to Babylon.
586 BC— this verse
Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
Nebuchadnezzar's forces conquer Jerusalem, destroy the city and the Temple, and exile most of the remaining population.
c. 585 BC
Jeremiah writes Lamentations
Jeremiah likely composes the book of Lamentations in the aftermath of Jerusalem's destruction, reflecting on the devastation.
This passage echoes Jeremiah's profound sorrow and desire for weeping, expressing a similar overwhelming grief for the destruction and sin of his people.
Matthew 2:16-18This passage describes Herod's brutal act of infanticide in Bethlehem, reflecting a similar horror at the slaughter of the innocent, though on a different scale and with different motives.
Luke 19:41-42Jesus weeps over Jerusalem, lamenting its coming destruction and the people's unawareness of their fate, paralleling Jeremiah's grief for the city and its inhabitants.
Psalm 6:6-7This psalm describes a deep personal anguish and exhaustion from sorrow, mirroring the physical and emotional toll described in Lamentations 2:11.
wesleyLamentations 2:11: "Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city."
2:11 Mine eyes - This whole verse is but expressive of the prophets great affliction for the miseries come upon the Jews. He wept himself almost blind. Bowels - His passion had disturbed his bodily humours, that his bowels were troubled. Liver - His gall lying under…
calvinLamentations 2:11: "Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city."
Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city.
Defecerunt in lachrymis oculi mei, conturbata…
This isn't just Jeremiah describing his tears; the text uses intense physical imagery like "bowels are troubled" and "liver is poured out" to show that his overwhelming grief has literally broken him down to his core. This visceral description reveals that the prophet's sorrow isn't merely an emotional reaction but a profound, gut-wrenching empathy with the suffering of his people, especially the innocent babies perishing in the streets.
Jeremiah, speaking in the first person here, describes the raw, physical toll the devastation of Jerusalem is taking on him. He's not just intellectually sad; his entire body is reacting to the horror, especially the sight of starving infants and babies collapsing in the streets. This visceral expression of grief flows directly from witnessing the complete destruction and ruin of his people, which is the central theme of this chapter.
Jeremiah, speaking in the first person here, describes the raw, physical toll the devastation of Jerusalem is taking on him. He's not just intellectually sad; his entire body is reacting to the horror, especially the sight of starving infants and babies collapsing in the streets. This visceral expression of grief flows directly from witnessing the complete destruction and ruin of his people, which is the central theme of this chapter.
"My eyes are spent with weeping; my stomach churns; my bile is poured out to the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because infants and babies faint in the streets of the city. Th…" — This isn't just Jeremiah describing his tears; the text uses intense physical imagery like "bowels are troubled" and "liver is poured out" to show that his overwhelming grief has literally broken him…
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Last reviewed October 2026
