Lamentations 1:14 Meaning and Explanation
“The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand: they are wreathed, and come up upon my neck: he hath made my strength to fall, the LORD hath delivered me into their hands, from whom I am not able to rise up.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Her sins have become a yoke bound to her neck by God's own hand, draining her strength and handing her over to her enemies.
What Does Lamentations 1:14 Mean?
Sin is pictured as a yoke, the heavy wooden bar laid across an ox's neck to bend it to labor. Here the transgressions themselves are woven into that yoke and fastened by God's hand. The image teaches that the weight crushing her is not arbitrary; it is the gathered consequence of her own rebellion, now bearing down upon her.
Under that load her strength fails, and she is handed over to enemies stronger than she. 'From whom I am not able to rise up' is the confession of total helplessness. There is no self-rescue from a yoke God himself has bound. The verse prepares the heart for the only remaining hope, which is that the same hand that bound might one day lift.
Lamentations 1:14 in the Original Language
'ol (עֹל), 'yoke' -- the heavy bar laid on an animal's neck, here the crushing weight of accumulated sin.
Frequently Asked Questions About Lamentations 1:14
What does Lamentations 1:14 mean?
Her sins have become a yoke bound to her neck by God's own hand, draining her strength and handing her over to her enemies.