Lamentations 4:11
What does Lamentations 4:11 mean?
A plain-English look at Lamentations 4:11 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Lamentations 4:11 means
This verse names the true cause behind the devastation: Jehovah has finished His work of wrath. His fierce anger has been poured out, and a fire has consumed Zion down to its foundations. The language suggests not merely physical burning but a total undoing of what once stood firm—social, spiritual, and institutional bedrocks are gone. God is not capricious; He had warned of judgment for persistent rebellion. Now He has acted, and none can resist. The verse corrects any impression that Babylon alone did this. Human armies were instruments; the decisive hand was the Lord’s, who judged His people in righteousness.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000Jehovah hath accomplished his wrath, he hath poured out his fierce anger; And he hath kindled a fire in Zion, which hath devoured the foundations thereof.
KJV
King James Version · 1611The Lord hath accomplished his fury; he hath poured out his fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901Jehovah hath accomplished his wrath, he hath poured out his fierce anger; And he hath kindled a fire in Zion, which hath devoured the foundations thereof.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949The Lord has given full effect to his passion, he has let loose his burning wrath; he has made a fire in Zion, causing the destruction of its bases.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862Completed hath Jehovah His fury, He hath poured out the fierceness of His anger, And he kindleth a fire in Zion, And it devoureth her foundations.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752Caph. The Lord hath accomplished his wrath, he hath poured out his fierce anger: and he hath kindled a fire in Sion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890Jehovah hath accomplished his fury; he hath poured out his fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, which hath consumed the foundations thereof.
Context
Following the chapter’s lowest horror (verse 10), verse 11 provides the theological center: God Himself has brought this judgment. This shifts the frame from human tragedy to divine justice. The next verses (12–13) contend that Jerusalem’s fall shocked the watching world and then identify the sins of prophets and priests as central to the nation’s downfall. Verses 14–16 will describe the leaders’ disgrace and scattering. The structure moves from cause to agents and effects, ensuring readers do not miss that the moral and spiritual breakdown—especially among leaders—lay beneath the military disaster.
v.10The hands of the pitiful women have boiled their own children; They were their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people.
v.11This passage
v.12The kings of the earth believed not, neither all the inhabitants of the world, That the adversary and the enemy would enter into the gates of Jerusalem.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Jeremiah 7:20
Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, mine anger and my wrath shall be poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of the field, and upon the fruit of the ground; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.
- Deuteronomy 32:21
They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; They have provoked me to anger with their vanities: And I will move them to jealousy with those that are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
- Jeremiah 24:8
And as the bad figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad, surely thus saith Jehovah, So will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt,
- Zechariah 1:6
But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? and they turned and said, Like as Jehovah of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.
- Luke 21:22
For these are days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.
- Lamentations 2:8
Jehovah hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion; He hath stretched out the line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying; And he hath made the rampart and wall to lament; they languish together.
Related questions readers ask
Keep reading
Want to dig deeper? Explore Lamentations 4
Hand-picked devotionals, topical studies, and pastoral answers that draw on Lamentations 4.
Topics that quote it
Topic
Bible Verses About Faithfulness
Faithfulness describes a person’s loyal and steadfast devotion to God, and also God’s unchanging, unfailing character.
Topic
Bible Verses About the Faithfulness of God
God’s faithfulness is a cornerstone of our hope, revealing His unwavering character and His commitment to His promises through all generations.
Topic
Bible Verses About the Mercy of God
God’s mercy is a profound aspect of His character, showing His compassionate love and steadfast faithfulness toward humanity
What the Bible says about…
Verses for this moment
Verses for
Bible Verses for Morning Work Anxiety
Start the workday from a steadier place — verses to pray with coffee.
Verses for
Bible Verses for the Anniversary of a Loss
When the calendar remembers — verses for the day you can't forget.
Verses for
Bible Verses for When You Feel Hopeless
When the future has gone gray — verses that don't lecture, only hold.