Lamentations 3 · Verse 12

Lamentations 3:12

He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
Lamentations 3:12, King James Version

Lamentations 3:12 in other translations

BSBHe bent His bow and set me as the target for His arrow.
WEBHe has bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
ASVHe hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
YLTHe hath trodden His bow, And setteth me up as a mark for an arrow.
DARBYHe hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
BBEWith his bow bent, he has made me the mark for his arrows.
WebsterHe hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.

What does Lamentations 3:12 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Lamentations 3:10-15

10-13. (Job 10:16; Ho 13:7, 8).

Read the full comment on Lamentations 3:10-15 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 12 He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow - One might conjecture that the following thought in the Toozek i Teemour was borrowed from this: - "One addressed the caliph Aaly, and said, 'If the heavens were a bow, and the earth the cord thereof; if calamities were arrows, man the butt for those arrows; and the holy blessed God the unerring marksman; where could the sons of Adam flee for succor?' The caliph replied, 'The children of Adam must flee unto the Lord.'" This was the state of poor Jerusalem. It seemed as a butt for all God's arrows; and each arrow of calamity entered into the soul, for God was the unerring marksman.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Lamentations 3:1-20

The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies. Verses 1-20 The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief and faith is often very severe. But the…

Read the full comment on Lamentations 3:1-20 →

Lamentations 3:12 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

דָּרַ֤ךְda.Rakhhe has bentH1869
קַשְׁתוֹ֙kash.Tobow hisH7198
וַיַּצִּיבֵ֔נִיvai.ya.tzi.Ve.niand he has set up meH5324
כַּמַּטָּרָ֖אka.ma.ta.Ra'like <the> targetH4307
לַחֵֽץ\׃\ \סla.Chetzfor <the> arrowH2671

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Lamentations 3:12

  • Psalms 38:2

    For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore.

  • Job 7:20

    I have sinned; what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? why hast thou set me as a mark against thee, so that I am a burden to myself?

  • Lamentations 2:4

    He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and slew all that were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire.

  • Job 6:4

    For the arrows of the Almighty are within me, the poison whereof drinketh up my spirit: the terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.

  • Psalms 7:12-13

    If he turn not, he will whet his sword; he hath bent his bow, and made it ready. He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors.

  • Job 16:12-13

    I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, and set me up for his mark. His archers compass me round about, he cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare; he poureth out my gall upon the ground.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
bent.
Job 6:4; 7:20; 16:12,13; Ps 7:12,13; 38:2

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Lamentations 3:11

    He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me desolate.

  • Lamentations 3:12

    He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.

  • Lamentations 3:13

    He hath caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins.

Read all of Lamentations 3

Lamentations 3:12 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Su arco entesó, y púsome como blanco á la saeta.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Il a bandé son arc, et m’a placé comme un but pour la flèche.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Er hat seinen Bogen gespannt und mich wie ein Ziel dem Pfeile hingestellt.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Tetendit arcum suum, et posuit me quasi signum ad sagittam.