Lamentations 2:12They tell their mothers, Where is grain and wine? When they swoon as the wounded in the streets of the city, When their soul is poured out into their mothers' bosom.
The setting
Jerusalem, 586 BC. The Babylonian siege has lasted 18 months. Children are dying in their mothers' arms from starvation in the streets of modern-day Old City, Jerusalem, Israel.
The emotion here: witnessing unthinkable horror as children die in mothers' arms
The original word
nephesh (נֶפֶשׁ) — their very life-breath, soul departing through final exhale
Read with care
What most readers miss in Lamentations 2:12
The children are asking for 'grain and wine' — the very offerings they used to bring to God's temple
Common misconceptionThis is metaphorical language about spiritual hunger. But Jeremiah is describing literal children starving to death during an 18-month siege where people resorted to cannibalism.
The thread continues
Verses that echo Lamentations 2:12
Bible Genome reading
Lamentations 2:12 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
Lamentations 2:12 comes from the book of Lamentations, written during the Exile period. These words are attributed to Jeremiah. The dominant emotion in this verse is grieving, with a comfort power of 20% and a tone that is lamenting. It belongs to the poetry genre of biblical literature. Key themes include famine, children's death, maternal anguish. Notable phrases: where is grain and wine; swoon as the wounded; soul is poured out.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same grieving
“By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you…”
— Genesis 3:19
“Jesus wept.”
— John 11:35
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?”
— Psalms 22:1
“They divide my garments among them. They cast lots for my clothing.”
— Psalms 22:18
“for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;”
— Romans 3:23
Your reflection
What does Lamentations 2:12 mean to you, today?
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