Lamentations 2:19
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Even in utter devastation, the call to prayer isn't just a singular event, but an ongoing commitment, happening "at the beginning of each watch" throughout the night. This persistent, deep pouring out of the heart, "like water," emphasizes a vulnerability and desperation in their pleas for their starving children, seen openly in the streets, that demands the most fervent attention.
“Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the night watches! Pour out your heart like water before the presence of the Lord! Lift your hands to him for the lives of your children, who faint for hunger at the head of every street.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
The prophet is speaking directly to Jerusalem, personified as the "daughter of Zion," amidst the devastation of war and famine. Following the detailed accounts of the city's destruction and the people's suffering, this verse calls the people to intense, continuous prayer throughout the night, even as their children are dying of hunger in the streets. It’s a desperate plea for divine intervention in the face of overwhelming despair, urging a deep pouring out of their hearts and lifting of their hands to God.
When disaster strikes, the prophet calls for a radical shift in the rhythm of life. It's not just a moment of prayer, but a sustained posture of crying out.
The verse calls for prayer "at the beginning of the night watches." This likely refers to the practice of dividing the night into distinct periods, with the instruction to begin prayer at the start of each one, or perhaps even to pray through the entire night.
Sustained Engagement
This isn't a quick, casual plea. The context of Jerusalem under siege and starving children demands a deep, unwavering cry to God. It highlights that times of crisis require not just prayer, but persistent, continuous prayer.
The Purpose:
This wasn't about avoiding God, but about turning to Him in a moment of extreme desperation, as the surrounding commentary suggests, to confess, lament, and seek His intervention.
What does it mean to pour out your heart 'like water'? It’s more than just speaking words; it's a profound expression of vulnerability and desperation before God.
The imagery of pouring out the heart "like water" is incredibly potent. Water flows freely, it has no fixed shape, and it can be spilled entirely. This command calls for complete openness and surrender in prayer.
Unfiltered Honesty:
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It signifies an unfiltered outpouring of emotions—grief, fear, pain, and desperate need—before God. There's no holding back, no pretending everything is okay when it's not. The heart's deepest contents are exposed.
A Mirror to Distress:
This metaphor is directly linked to the devastating hunger described: children fainting in the streets. The prayer is meant to be as unrestrained and overwhelming as the suffering itself, reflecting the depth of their crisis and their total reliance on God for sustenance.
The ultimate plea is not for self-preservation, but for the lives of the most defenseless. This reveals a heart that, even in despair, reflects God's own love for the vulnerable.
The climax of the lament is the intercession for the children: 'Lift up your hands to him for the lives of your children, who faint for hunger at the head of every street.' This highlights a crucial aspect of prayer in times of crisis.
Compassion in Crisis:
Despite their own immense suffering, the focus shifts to the most vulnerable – the children. This act of intercession demonstrates that even in the darkest hours, the call is to extend compassion and to appeal to God for those who cannot appeal for themselves.
Visible Desperation:
Their suffering isn't hidden away; they 'faint for hunger at the head of every street.' This public, visible agony amplifies the urgency of the prayer, presenting a stark reality that demands divine attention and intervention.
Understand the original words
lebab · Hebrew Noun
The central organ of human emotion, will, and intellect in biblical anthropology. To pour out one's heart is to express the innermost reality of one’s spiritual and emotional state before God in sincerity.
kaph · Hebrew Noun
A gesture of prayer, surrender, or petition. Lifting hands signifies dependency on God and the desire for His intervention or blessing.
This powerful plea in Lamentations emerges from the ashes of Jerusalem's complete destruction. It captures the raw agony of parents watching their children starve amidst the ruins, urging them to turn their desperate prayers to God even in the deepest night of despair.
722 BC
Fall of Samaria and Assyrian Captivity
The Northern Kingdom of Israel falls to the Assyrian Empire, leading to the exile of its people and the scattering of the ten tribes.
605 BC
First Deportation to Babylon
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquers Judah and begins deporting some of its inhabitants, including young nobles like Daniel, to Babylon.
597 BC
Second Deportation to Babylon
Following a rebellion, Jerusalem is besieged, and King Jehoiachin along with thousands more Judeans are exiled to Babylon. The prophet Ezekiel is among them.
586 BC— this verse
Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
Nebuchadnezzar's forces destroy Jerusalem, its magnificent Temple, and deport the majority of the remaining population to Babylon, leaving the land desolate.
c. 580 BC
Writing of Lamentations
The prophet Jeremiah (traditionally) or another contemporary writer composes the Book of Lamentations, a series of poetic laments over the destruction of Jerusalem and Judah.
539 BC
Fall of Babylon to Persia
Cyrus the Great conquers Babylon, paving the way for the return of exiled peoples, including the Judeans, to their homelands.
This verse echoes the instruction to 'pour out your heart like water' by calling on the people to 'pour out your hearts before him,' highlighting the importance of unreserved communication with God in times of distress.
Jeremiah 14:17This passage describes a similar scene of famine and despair where virgins and young men faint and fall in the streets due to lack of food, underscoring the dire circumstances faced by the children in Lamentations 2:19.
Matthew 14:15The disciples' concern for the hungry crowd in this Gospel account parallels the desperate plea for the children's lives in Lamentations, showing a recurring theme of compassion and urgency for those suffering from lack.
1 Timothy 2:8The call to 'lift up your hands' in prayer, as seen in Lamentations, is directly addressed in this New Testament instruction for men to 'lift up holy hands in prayer,' connecting ancient prayer practices with enduring biblical principles.
barnesLamentations 2:19: "Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street."
In - (or at) the beginning of the watches "At the beginning of each night-watch" means all the night through. The Hebrews divided the night into three watches.
pulpitLamentations 2:19: "Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street."
Verse 19. - In the beginning of the watches. This would seem to be most naturally explained as referring to the first watch of the night. When most are wrapped in their first and sweetest sleep, the daughter of Zion is to "arise and cry." Ot…
Even in utter devastation, the call to prayer isn't just a singular event, but an ongoing commitment, happening "at the beginning of each watch" throughout the night. This persistent, deep pouring out of the heart, "like water," emphasizes a vulnerability and desperation in their pleas for their starving children, seen openly in the streets, that demands the most fervent attention.
The prophet is speaking directly to Jerusalem, personified as the "daughter of Zion," amidst the devastation of war and famine. Following the detailed accounts of the city's destruction and the people's suffering, this verse calls the people to intense, continuous prayer throughout the night, even as their children are dying of hunger in the streets. It’s a desperate plea for divine intervention in the face of overwhelming despair, urging a deep pouring out of their hearts and lifting of their hands to God.
The prophet is speaking directly to Jerusalem, personified as the "daughter of Zion," amidst the devastation of war and famine. Following the detailed accounts of the city's destruction and the people's suffering, this verse calls the people to intense, continuous prayer throughout the night, even as their children are dying of hunger in the streets. It’s a desperate plea for divine intervention in the face of overwhelming despair, urging a deep pouring out of their hearts and lifting of their hands to God.
"“Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the night watches! Pour out your heart like water before the presence of the Lord! Lift your hands to him for the lives of your children, who faint for h…" — Even in utter devastation, the call to prayer isn't just a singular event, but an ongoing commitment, happening "at the beginning of each watch" throughout the night. This persistent, deep pouring ou…
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Last reviewed October 2026
