Lamentations 5:21 Meaning and Explanation
“Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →They plead for God to turn them back to himself and renew their days as in former times.
What Does Lamentations 5:21 Mean?
Here is the great prayer toward which the whole chapter has been moving: 'Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned.' The people recognize that they cannot return to God by their own strength alone; they need God himself to turn them. It is a prayer for grace to enable repentance, asking God to do in them what they cannot do for themselves. Only if he turns them will they be truly turned.
'Renew our days as of old.' They ask God to restore them, to bring back the days of fellowship and flourishing they once knew. The plea looks back to 'the days of old' remembered with longing in the first chapter, and asks God to make them new again. This is the heart's deepest cry after all the sorrow: not merely for relief but for restoration, for renewed nearness to the God who alone can turn a ruined people back to himself and renew their life.
Lamentations 5:21 in the Original Language
shuv (שׁוּב), 'turn' -- to return or restore; the prayer that God himself would bring them back to him.
Frequently Asked Questions About Lamentations 5:21
What does Lamentations 5:21 mean?
They plead for God to turn them back to himself and renew their days as in former times.